Two men's soccer teams dropped out of ASIAD 19

Syria said there was an error in registering the squad for ASIAD 19 and requested to replace the players. The organizing committee rejected the proposal because according to the rules, teams are only allowed to select players from the preliminary list of 30 players registered with the organizing committee from March 2023. Therefore, Syria would like to withdraw with an apology to host China. Meanwhile, Afghanistan has not announced the cause.

In the previous edition, Afghanistan did not participate. Syria reached the quarterfinals before losing 0-1 to Vietnam after 120 minutes. The person who made the achievement was Nguyen Van Toan.

Because two teams withdrew, Group C only had Uzbekistan and Hong Kong left. The two teams will play two matches on September 22 and September 25. Previously, Cambodia was the first team to withdraw before the draw took place.

Initially with 23 teams, the organizers divided into six groups with one group of three teams. Teams compete in a round robin, selecting six first place teams, six second place teams and four third place teams with the best results to enter the 1/8 round. Because the first match takes place tomorrow, September 19, it is difficult for the organizers to change, Uzbekistan and Hong Kong automatically advance.

The other group teams also benefit from having one less competitor for the third place with the best record. In Group B, Vietnam was beaten lower than Saudi Arabia and Iran but higher than Mongolia. Coach Hoang Anh Tuan and his team need to win against Mongolia, have at least one point ahead of the other two opponents and minimize losses to advance.

Vietnam flies to Hangzhou, China from September 16. The team has three days to adapt to the climate and field before entering the opening match against Mongolia at 3:00 p.m. tomorrow, September 19, at Linping Sports Center.