The Vietnam national team has 7 days to prepare for the match against Singapore.

The Vietnam national team will return home on a flight on the afternoon of July 25. Coach Kim Sang Sik and his players will have a 7-day window to prepare for hosting Singapore at the My Dinh National Stadium.

In the opening match against Timor Leste, striker Nguyen Dinh Bac shone with a hat-trick, while Do Hoang Hen scored a brace, contributing to the resounding 7-0 victory of Coach Kim Sang Sik’s squad at the Chonburi Stadium. This performance also affirmed the strength of the defending champions against opponents who are aiming to dethrone the "Golden Star Warriors" as the top team in the region.

The Vietnam national team took only seven minutes to open the scoring. After Dinh Bac’s shot was saved by goalkeeper Dylan Niski, Hoang Hen quickly followed up with his left foot to put the ball into the net.

In the 31st minute, Dinh Bac doubled the lead with a classy curling shot into the far corner from just outside the box. Just 10 minutes later, Hoang Hen completed his brace by successfully capitalizing on sustained pressure on the Timor Leste defense.

In the 43rd minute, Dinh Bac scored the fourth goal for Vietnam after seizing an opportunity in the box. In the first minute of stoppage time in the first half, Xuan Son made it 5-0 with a close-range tap-in from a precise cross by Van Vi on the left flank.

In the 65th minute, Bui Hoang Viet Anh crossed from near the byline, allowing Dinh Bac to easily complete his hat-trick. The 7-0 final goal came in the 79th minute when Quang Hai’s shot caused Liam Farrugia to awkwardly deflect the ball into his own net.

Notably, Do Hoang Hen’s opening goal entered the history books as the earliest goal scored by the Vietnam national team in the ASEAN Cup. The previous record belonged to Huynh Hong Son, who scored in the 11th minute against Cambodia in the 2002 Tiger Cup.

The Vietnam national team also produced the most explosive first half in their history at the Southeast Asian championship, leading Timor Leste 5-0 after 45 minutes. This achievement surpassed the landmark of leading Laos 4-0 at halftime in the 2007 AFF Cup. It was also the first time two Vietnam players both scored braces in the first half of an ASEAN Cup match, with Do Hoang Hen and Nguyen Dinh Bac achieving this feat.

With three goals and one assist, Dinh Bac continued to be the focal point of the match. The 2004-born striker became the third Vietnamese player to score a hat-trick in the ASEAN Cup, following Phan Thanh Binh and Le Cong Vinh.

The 7-0 victory was also the biggest winning margin for the Vietnam national team under Coach Kim Sang Sik. Since the South Korean coach took charge, Vietnam had previously beaten Myanmar 5-0 in the 2024 ASEAN Cup and Laos 5-0 in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers, but the thrashing of Timor Leste set a new milestone.

This was also the first time in many years that the Vietnam national team scored as many as seven goals in an official match, and also their biggest win in the ASEAN Cup since a 9-0 victory over Laos in the 2007 edition.

According to the plan, the Vietnam national team will return to Hanoi on the afternoon of July 25. Coach Kim Sang Sik and his players will have 7 days of preparation before hosting Singapore at My Dinh Stadium on July 31 in the second match of Group A, aiming to secure another three points to gain an early advantage in the race for the semifinals.