Vietnam’s fairy-tale run at the Asian Cup has come to an end, after they were beaten by Iraq in their quarter-final encounter at Rajamangala Stadium in Bangkok. Thousands of colourfully-attired Vietnam fans turned out in support of their team, but they made little difference as Iraq ran out comfortable 2-0 winners on the back of a superb individual performance from captain Younes Mohammed. He opened the scoring from Iraq’s first attack of the game, rising highest to flick home playmaker Nashat Ali’s free-kick barely ninety seconds into the match. Some desperate defending from Nhu Thanh Vu twice prevented Iraq from going further ahead, with the Vietnamese clinging on grimly in the hope of avoiding a rout. On the stroke of half-time Iraq were forced into a desperate goal-line clearance of their own, as Nguyen Vu Phong saw his strike cleared off the goal line by substitute Ahmad Abid Ali. Normal service was resumed in the second half with Iraq continuing their procession towards Hong Son Duong’s goal. The west Asian team extended their lead just after the hour mark when Younes Mohammed curled a superb free-kick over the wall and into the top right hand corner of Duong’s goal. Despite their determined efforts Vietnam were unable to find the back of the net during the closing stages of this match, to the disappointment of the few thousand travelling fans that made up the majority of another sparse crowd in Bangkok . While admitting that he was pleased to lead Iraq to the quarter-finals of the tournament for the first time since 1976, coach Jorvan Viera was unimpressed with his team, suggesting that they would have to improve if they were to have any hope of lifting the trophy. Iraq will now face Korea Republic in the last four, after the Koreans disposed of Iraq's regional rival Iran on penalties in their quarter-final. Copyright © Michael Tuckerman & Soccerphile.com Hotels in Bangkok - Bookings Hotels in Kuala Lumpur - Bookings Hotels in Jakarta - Bookings Hotels in Hanoi - Bookings Hotels in Ho Chi Minh - Bookings

I've been in Hanoi for two weeks and I still haven't the faintest clue how to navigate the streets here. So much for my trusty internal GPS. This city has me beat and I concede defeat. That said, it's not as though I'm in a complete fog. Some valuable lessons have been learned, interesting sites seen, and plenty of beer consumed. I thought I'd share some of my newfound knowledge with you lest you yourself wind up visiting this city planner's worst nightmare one day. Man cannot live on Lonely Planet alone, after all: Come prepared: There aren't any shops to buy toiletries or the like at any of the hotels. And forget about popping out to the nearest 7-11--there aren't any of those either. Convenience stores do exist, but it takes time and energy to get to them. If you drink, you're in luck as they sell the world's cheapest beer in Vietnam. The only catch is you leave yourself wide open to the world's biggest hangover in the morning and nowhere to buy aspirin. Also, unless you're extremely careful, you can expect your stomach to disagree with at least something during your stay. Be prepared. Pack your medicine. Best restaurant: You can't possibly sample every place in Hanoi in such a short time but the good news is that the smattering of places I have been to have all been excellent (save for one--Bobby Chinn's). The best by far, though, has been La Salsa across the street from St. Joseph's Cathedral. A tapas joint owned and operated by French people, La Salsa is a favorite hangout of expats and backpackers alike. Don't let that turn you off, the food more than makes up for the non-Vietnamese experience. Chorizo to die for, mouthwatering meatballs, succulent duck and sangria that will leave you seeing double for a fortnight (Did I mention you should pack your Tylenol?). Best nightclub: Nutz at the Sheraton Hotel. This is a no-brainer because it's the only disco that the fun police haven't shut down in the last couple of months. It isn't anything to write home about what with prostitutes on the prowl and visiting businessmen--all conspicuously without wedding rings--lapping up the attention. But the place is always busy and there are enough people not taking part in the sex trade to make it worthwhile. Better still, it's one of the only places I've found that stays open late. They flicked the switch on us at 12:30 the other night (also spoiling the fun for Australia coach Graham Arnold and his retinue) and stayed open until 3 a.m. on the weekend. Good numbers for a city that usually shuts its doors at 11 p.m. Most interesting site: Ho Chi Minh mausoleum. Ho is a little less green that V.I. Lenin in Red Square, yet he still radiates an eerie glow. I guess that's what happens when you've been lying in state for 37 years. French women also cause headaches: "I find it so easy to get laid here," one particularly stunning blonde French woman told me. Which begged the question, "In what country do stunning blonde French women find it difficult to get laid?" Best coffee: The locals will probably want to lynch me when they read this, but my vote for the best mud goes to Highland, a Vietnamese chain similar to Starbucks and Tully's. I find the local joe too strong and slightly odd-tasting. It's an acquired taste that I'm certain I will never acquire. Highlander also has a good wireless connection (in most outlets) and decent food to boot. And air conditioning, bless them. Worst service: Bobby Chinn's. The battleaxe that runs the place ruins what otherwise would be the ideal restaurant. Great food ("Asian fusion"), hip décor and sofas in the back with hookah pipes for some serious chilling. Don't get too excited though, the waitresses will stop just short of prodding you with a fork to hurry your meal along. It was truly the worst dining experience of my life. And I've been to some pretty terrible places over the years. Service in general: Polite but not entirely with it. Take a deep breath and be prepared to wait when ordering in Hanoi. The locals work at a relaxed pace and are prone to getting orders wrong, so patience is a must. Learning some Vietnamese should help minimize any communication breakdowns. MVP award: Definitely goes to the city's drivers. Ho Chi Minh City may be even busier than Hanoi, but there's no denying the people here know how to operate their vehicles, be it the taxi drivers or the multitude of people on mopeds. As one observant visitor pointed out, "They seem to be born on motorcycles." Don't drink the water: And stay away from ice cubes. You'll regret it in the morning otherwise. Most unnerving: The police who monitor you on the dance floor. I guess my jig ain't as bad as I thought, though, as I have yet to be arrested. Most pleasant surprise: The absence of McDonald's, Pizza Hut, Starbucks, etc. You can still get pizza and cheeseburgers, just not from Ronald and the rest of junk-food juggernauts. It's nice to see they haven't reached every corner of the world. Yet. Sadly, I've seen two KFCs here and there's a Segafredo's coming soon. Still, as the saying goes: "I got to Hanoi before obesity." If you hurry, so can you. Wackiest observation: Is it just me or does Colonel Sanders not look like a plumper version of Ho Chi Minh? Copyright © C.G. Williams & Soccerphile.com Hotels in Bangkok - Bookings Hotels in Kuala Lumpur - Bookings Hotels in Jakarta - Bookings Hotels in Hanoi - Bookings Hotels in Ho Chi Minh - Bookings

A 4-1 loss has never been so satisfying. Co-host Vietnam squeaked into the quarterfinals of the Asian Cup on Monday as Group B runners-up, despite receiving a footballing lesson from defending champions Japan at My Dinh Stadium . Vietnam booked their ticket to the knockout round in place of Qatar, who crashed out of the competition with a 2-1 loss to the United Arab Emirates in Ho Chi Minh. News of that loss triggered wild celebrations across Hanoi that lasted well into the night. The humbling loss to Japan was quickly forgotten, as was the match-fixing scandal that sent seven of the team’s players to jail only three months before the tournament. Monday night was all about celebrating the present; there was no need to dwell on the past. The team most pundits predicted would lose three straight had reached the second round of a competition they hadn’t appeared in since 1960, and nobody could dampen their spirits. “I think it’s a sensation,” gushed Vietnam coach Alfred Riedl, who earlier called the match against Japan the biggest in the nation’s history. “It is very good for Vietnamese football, a good education for us. Very few people expected us to go through.” Flag-waving fans on motorbikes tore through the capital honking their horns and chanting “Vietnam! Vietnam!” for hours after the match. One of them, Ngo Ngoc Khanh, was overcome with joy. “This is the best thing to happen to Vietnam in years,” said Khanh, adding that he was unfazed by the prospect of Vietnam having to play its remaining games away from home. “I don’t care about that. It would be nice to see them play in Vietnam, but the important thing is that we got to the quarterfinals. Vietnam is number one!” Riedl also said he wasn’t bothered with having to play play Group A winners Iraq in Bangkok. “It’s not where we play that’s important but how we play when we get there against a strong opponent,” Riedl said. “I don’t see any problems with our fitness or anything else just because we’re in a different country. We may surprise again. You never know.” Japan, meanwhile, will stay in Hanoi for their Final Eight match against Australia on Saturday after topping Group B with two wins and a draw. Copyright © C.G. Williams & Soccerphile.com Hotels in Bangkok - Bookings Hotels in Kuala Lumpur - Bookings Hotels in Jakarta - Bookings Hotels in Hanoi - Bookings Hotels in Ho Chi Minh - Bookings

Japan and co-hosts Vietnam advanced from Group B to the knock out stages of the Asian Cup on a dramatic night in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh. Despite being on the wrong end of a 4-1 hammering from current Asian cup holders Japan at My Dinh National Stadium in Hanoi, Vietnam progressed thanks to a stoppage time goal by Faisal Khalil, which gave UAE a 2-1 win over Qatar in Ho Chi Minh. Hotels in Bangkok - Bookings Hotels in Kuala Lumpur - Bookings Hotels in Jakarta - Bookings Hotels in Hanoi - Bookings Hotels in Ho Chi Minh - Bookings

If there's anything more bewildering than the roads in Hanoi, it's the Asian Cup press conferences. We've got Arabic, Japanese and Vietnamese teams in Group B, with French, Austrian and Bosnian managers, and a football confederation determined to filter everything through the lips of an English speaker (and more often than not one with only a rudimentary knowledge of the language). The result has been an unmitigated disaster. Questions and answers get so lost in translation it's hard to discern where one train of thought starts and another ends. It's a mish-mash of nonsense that takes all the king's horses and all the king's men just to make it intelligible again. You know things are fairly fubar when Frenchman Bruno Metsu resorts to speaking English during a press conference. The UAE manager with the Robert Plant coiffure is notorious for eschewing the international language whenever possible, famously refusing to speak it during one press conference at the 2002 World Cup. But Metsu has been so appalled by the poor interpreting at the Asian Cup that he's taken to interrupting translations mid-sentence and doing it himself. Following the UAE's 3-1 loss to Japan on Friday night, Metsu was flanked by no fewer than three interpreters--one to translate French-Vietnamese, one for Arabic-English and one for English-Vietnamese. Metsu, who speaks English well despite himself, lasted about two minutes before he started shaking his head and rolling his eyes when the end product was finally delivered. And when his French-Vietnamese conduit asked him to repeat an answer, Metsu steadfastly refused. "It's your job to pay attention," said Metsu in French, arms crossed defiantly. After that, Metsu made all three translators obsolete by conducting the rest of the proceedings in English. Things haven't been any better in the Japan camp. Bosnian manager Ivica Osim's interpreter, Zen Chida, was pressed into providing English translations earlier in the tournament despite only being proficient in Serbian and Japanese. Most questions had to be repeated two or three times until he understood them, and the answers were either unintelligible or completely off topic. He knew he was crashing and burning. So did Osim. So did the rest of us. So when Osim flew into a rage at his players after a 1-1 draw with Qatar on Monday, the pressure was all too much for Chida, who broke down in tears while attempting to translate the coach's wrath to the players. The AFC wisely wheeled in a replacement for Chida to handle the English during all subsequent press conferences. Unwisely, they chose someone who seems to have no knowledge of football and is incapable of translating any more than 25 percent of what's being said. Thank you very little. The substitute interpreter was so bad during a media gathering on Thursday that both Chida and Osim started speaking in English to get their points across. I’d send a letter complaining about all this to the AFC, but I’m certain it too would get lost in translation. Copyright © C.G. Williams & Soccerphile.com Hotels in Bangkok - Bookings Hotels in Kuala Lumpur - Bookings Hotels in Jakarta - Bookings Hotels in Hanoi - Bookings Hotels in Ho Chi Minh - Bookings

Coach Alfred Riedl is a win away from seeing Vietnam into the quarterfinals of the Asian Cup but he says he’ll still be surprised if his team makes it that far. “It would be a surprise for me if we get to the second round,” Riedl said Wednesday. “I didn’t know before the tournament how strong the two Arab teams would be, but I did know that we came in as the outsiders. The other three teams were expected to beat us.” Thanks to their shock 2-0 win over the United Arab Emirates on Sunday, Vietnam can reach the second stage of the tournament tonight with a win over Group B rivals Qatar at My Dinh Stadium in Hanoi . Vietnam has played Qatar twice in the past, both meetings coming in the qualification round for the World Cup in 1994. Qatar won both legs 4-0. Riedl gives puts the odds of his squad beating Qatar at “fifty-fifty,” tipping the team with more luck on the night to take the spoils. Vietnam will play in front of what is expected to be a sell-out crowd of 40,000 people, with untold thousands more watching on TVs around the country, but Riedl says there is no added pressure on his squad, appearing at the Asian Cup for the first time since 1960. “Too much pressure makes you lose your mind a little bit,” he said. “So we try to shelter the players from the expectations of the nation. We put pressure on ourselves to win, but we don’t allow any outside pressure to affect us.” Vietnam captain Le Cong Vinh agreed with his manager’s assessment, adding that his team was treating tonight’s match no differently than any other. “Playing in front of so many Vietnamese fans will be a big advantage for us, but at the same time we have to play in a way that will satisfy them,” he said. “On this occasion, I hope we show the world what Vietnamese football has to offer.” Copyright © C.G. Williams & Soccerphile.com Hotels in Bangkok - Bookings Hotels in Kuala Lumpur - Bookings Hotels in Jakarta - Bookings Hotels in Hanoi - Bookings Hotels in Ho Chi Minh - Bookings

Traveling to Hanoi for the Asian Cup or simply happen to be in town and want to check out a game? Here’s a hassle-free guide to getting to My Dinh Stadium and what you can expect when you get there. My Dinh Stadium is Vietnam’s largest stadium, with a seating capacity of 40,000. Named after the area in Tu Liem District it’s located in, the stadium opened in the fall of 2003 and as such is as modern a facility as you’ll find in Southeast Asia. Despite the existence of a running track, the view from the stands is excellent in this compact ground located roughly 10 kilometers northwest of the heart of Hanoi. If you’re unfortunate enough to have a ticket to a match on a rainy day, make sure you bring an umbrella, as the majority of the seats are exposed to the elements. You’ll only be spared if you’re in the middle and upper tiers of the east and west stands. Getting there: Forget walking, cycling or busing it unless you’re keen on adventure (and have a lot of spare time on your hands). Taxis are the only way to go. From the city center—i.e. in the vicinity of Hoan Kiem Lake—the stadium can be reached in 20 minutes at a cost of about 100,000 VND ($6.20 US). The taxis are metered and the drivers are by and large aboveboard. They also appreciate tips, although this is by no means required. Warning: Be sure to specify you want to go to My Dinh Stadium or you may wind up being shuttled to the older Hanoi Stadium closer to town. What to expect: The stadium may look like your typical modern sports facility, but don’t expect the creature comforts you might be used to in the West. If you find yourself parched on a hot day, for example, you stand a better chance of running into Elvis than getting a cold drink. Refrigeration isn’t an option at My Dinh. What you get instead are bags of lukewarm water fastened with twist ties and straws sticking out the top. That and cans of warm soft drinks and bottled water. You’re in slightly better luck if you’re hungry. Hot dog-shaped meat on a stick can be transferred to a bun outfitted with local condiments. A tasty treat indeed. Bags of crisps and other assorted junk food can also be had. Ringing the stadium are a smattering of souvenir shops where you’ll find official AFC merchandise at official AFC prices. T-shirts go for $15 US, but you’ll only be able to wear Japan or Vietnam on your chest--for some reason, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates didn’t make the cut. Baseball caps and tournament programs are also on sale. The atmosphere ranges from electric (when the home team is playing) to comatose (anyone catch Japan vs. Qatar the other night?). Safety isn’t an issue, although things could be fairly tense for Japan supporters when Ivica Osim’s squad take on the co-hosts July 16. The odds of a full-scale riot breaking out aren’t high though, as the fans are well-mannered and there are plenty of security personnel on hand to ensure they stay that way. Ticket info

So much for “soccer-mad” Vietnam. You’d hardly know the Asian Cup was taking place here if you sidestepped the stadium. Driving into the city center from Noi Bai International Airport you are met with a relentless bombardment of advertising—Vietnamese products, Chinese, Korean—but nary a mention of the Asian Cup until you reach the heart of the city, and even then you have to make an effort to spot the smattering of signs draped from light and telephone poles. Yes, My Dinh Stadium was close to capacity last night for the Group B opener between Vietnam and the UAE, the host nation’s first match at the continental championship in 47 years, and yes, thousands of people were huddled around TVs throughout the city to witness the historic encounter. But when the whistle blew to give the co-hosts a shock 2-0 victory, the wild celebrations inside the stadium stayed put. There was no ripple effect. It was very much business as usual at the Funky Monkey bar in central Hanoi less than an hour after the game, with zero sign that any one of the 30 (mainly local) patrons even knew of the existence of the tournament. Unlike the wild scenes throughout Germany last year at the World Cup following a victory by the home team, Hanoi was for all intents and purposes not interested last night. The place was abuzz as usual with a disorienting number of motorcycles whizzing to and fro, but there were no Vietnamese flags being waved nor any noticeable rise in the cacophony of vehicular noise that is the soundtrack to life the capital city. Proud of their win? You can count on it. But perhaps it’s going to take a victory over Japan or a ticket to the second round—or both—before soccer fever really sets in. Copyright © C.G. Williams & Soccerphile.com Hotels in Bangkok - Bookings Hotels in Kuala Lumpur - Bookings Hotels in Jakarta - Bookings Hotels in Hanoi - Bookings Hotels in Ho Chi Minh - Bookings

Qatar flew into Vietnam behind schedule late Friday from Bangkok but Bosnian coach Dzemaludin Musovic insisted there were no "mind games" behind his team's late arrival as they prepare for their opening game against defending Asian champions Japan. "How many days do you think one team must come before match day? Just two days and that's enough," Musovic told reporters after Qatar practiced for the first time at the 40,000 capacity My Dinh National Stadium in Hanoi, the venue for the teams' Group B match. Qatar postponed their arrival in Vietnam twice by a total of two days without giving any specific explanation, according to the Asian Football Confederation media office. The move was seen by the voracious Japanese media as Qatari "mind games" aimed at shielding the Qatari team from the news hungry Japanese reporters. The Qataris underwent an intensive 10-day training camp in Bangkok acclimatizing to the hot and humid weather before travelling for their match with the current Asian champions. The Japanese squad, meanwhile, have only just arrived in the Vietnamese capital and are struggling to adapt to the hot and humid conditions . Hotels in Bangkok - Bookings Hotels in Kuala Lumpur - Bookings Hotels in Jakarta - Bookings Hotels in Hanoi - Bookings Hotels in Ho Chi Minh - Bookings

Vietnam One of the hosts of the 2007 Asian Cup is soccer-mad Vietnam. Unlikely to progress from Group B which contains holders Japan and Asian Games winners Qatar, Vietnam will have tremendous support. Look out for these traditional straw conical hats on the terraces.