Vietnam finished top of Group B, having defeated a battling Hong Kong, China 5-3 victory on the opening day, followed up with a convincing 3-0 defeat of the Philippines.

They concluded their group stage with a tepid 0-0 stalemate against defending champions Islamic Republic of Iran but Dinh Hoang said his team will be in the right frame of mind to play Japan.

“We played to conserve our energy against Iran and now we will shift our attention to prepare to face Japan,” he said. “We don’t have anyone injured and so we will have a full squad against Japan.”

A friendly in April ended 4-1 in favour of Japan but Dinh Hoang said Vietnam will go into Tuesday’s match having thoroughly analysed the East Asian side.

“We will analyse our opponents and come up with the best strategy to defeat them.”

Japan started their campaign with a 5-2 win against Indonesia. However, the two-time runners-up were made to sweat in their second game against Bahrain, who fought back from three goals down before Japan ultimately triumphed 3-2. The East Asians were left stunned in their final Group C tie after Thailand fought back to register a 3-1 victory.

Head coach Takehiro Suga called on his players to refocus on their target of winning the title for the first time. 

“We need to stay focused for the next match and come together as a team. Our goal is to be champions of Asia, and we must keep that mindset. We need to play with a strong spirit in the next match,” he said 

“Vietnam has talented, speedy players, so we know it will be a tough, difficult game. We’ll focus on making small adjustments, but we won’t change our style. We believe in ourselves and will concentrate on our own performance.”

Venue: Hohhot Sports Centre, Hohhot

Kick-off: Tuesday, 11:00 (UTC+8)