Ahead of the highly anticipated semi-final between Vietnam and China on January 20 at the AFC U23 Asian Cup 2026, Thai media and football fans have continued to show significant interest in the match.

Vietnam's U23 team win 3-2 against the UAE on early January 17 morning (Vietnam time) in the quarter-finals to advance to the semi-finals of the AFC U23 Asian Cup 2026.

Notably, the majority of opinions expressed a "complete conviction" in Vietnam's performance, predicting a victory for the "Golden Star warriors" in the upcoming semi-final.

Responding to a query by the prominent Thai football fanpage Buriram Prankster v2 on whether Vietnam could defeat China to reach the final, almost all respondents predicted a win for the Vietnamese squad.

A user with account name Mitr Chikung said: "Only two matches left, Vietnam will surely be the champions!" Nom Nom Rintamat shared: "Vietnam will beat China by at least 2-0" (user). Meanwhile, Ongart Payong forecast: "Vietnam defeated Thailand, so they will overcome China easily."

Echoing the view, Somchai Siew noted: "China and Thailand played on equal terms... Therefore, if China face Vietnam, Vietnam will win because they currently play better than Thailand." User Bia Soitan commented: "Vietnam will win because of their solid system and relentless fighting spirit."

On other leading fanpages such as Siamsport, BG Sports, and Thai Football Field Sidelines, the majority of predictions suggest that Vietnam and Japan will be the two teams advancing to the final.

On the early morning of January 17 (Vietnam time), Vietnamese players kept their Asian dream alive at the AFC U23 Asian Cup 2026, earning widespread attention from fans and football bodies after a thrilling 3-2 extra-time win over the UAE in the quarter-finals.

The hard-fought victory, sealed by Pham Minh Phuc’s decisive goal in the 101st minute, sent the Southeast Asian representative into the semi-finals and drew praise from the official fanpages of FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), with FIFA posting: “A dream waiting to be completed…”

Earlier, FIFA also shared a video revisiting the Vietnamese U23 team’s miraculous journey at Changzhou in 2018, creating a connection between the past and the present – where today’s generation is striving to carry forward and complete the unfinished dream of their predecessors.

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