HANOI (Interstat) — Vietnam opened its competition campaign with a 2-0 home victory over Chinese Taipei on Wednesday, using a first-half strike from Michael Olaha and a second-half goal from Nguyen Dinh Bac to secure the result. Vietnam improved to 1-0 in this competition and 2-1 across all competitions. Chinese Taipei dropped to 0-1 in the competition and 0-1 overall. The home side took the lead in the first half, added a second goal after the break and held Chinese Taipei scoreless through the final whistle.

Olaha put Vietnam ahead in the 21st minute, scoring the opening goal and giving the home side the lead. He played 73 minutes before being substituted. Nguyen Dinh Bac doubled the advantage in the 58th minute and remained on the field until the 87th minute, when he came off. Nguyen Dinh Bac finished with a goal in 87 minutes of action, while Olaha had a goal in 73 minutes. The goals came in the 21st and 58th minutes, and Vietnam carried a two-goal lead into the final stages. The opening goal came midway through the first half, and Vietnam took a 1-0 lead into the break. After Nguyen Dinh Bac’s goal in the 58th minute, Vietnam had a two-goal margin. Olaha’s goal was his only score of the match, and Nguyen Dinh Bac’s goal was his only score of the match. Both players were later substituted after their goals. Chinese Taipei could not answer before the final whistle, and Vietnam’s defense kept the visitors off the scoreboard.

Vietnam made three changes at the start of the second half, bringing on Tran N. S., Vo Hoang Minh Khoa and Pham Minh Phuc. Olaha came off in the 73rd minute, and Nguyen Dinh Bac was replaced in the 87th. Chinese Taipei used substitutions in the 69th minute with Yao-hsing Yu and Chen Po-Liang, in the 77th minute with Huang Wei-Chieh, Estama J. and Chen Hao-Wei, and in the 90th minute plus one with Kao J. The substitutions began for Vietnam at halftime, with three players entering at once. Chinese Taipei waited until the 69th minute for its first changes, then made three more in the 77th. Kao J. entered in the 90th minute plus one. Olaha and Nguyen Dinh Bac, the two scorers, were among the players removed by Vietnam in the second half. The changes did not alter the scoreline, as Vietnam maintained its two-goal cushion through the final whistle. Chinese Taipei’s attempts to regroup after the interval could not produce a goal.

Chinese Taipei’s record in the competition now stands at 0 wins and 1 loss. Vietnam’s competition mark is 1 win and 0 losses. Across all competitions, Chinese Taipei is 0-1, while Vietnam is 2-1. Vietnam entered the match after a 1-0 loss at Malaysia and a 4-2 home win over Pakistan earlier this season, results that had left the side at 1-1 across all competitions before Wednesday’s victory. The win gave Vietnam its second overall victory of the season and kept Chinese Taipei without a win. Vietnam’s two goals came from Olaha and Nguyen Dinh Bac, the two key performers listed for the match.

Chinese Taipei is scheduled to host Kyrgyzstan in its next match, a club friendly. Vietnam will look to build on a performance that produced two goals and a clean sheet. The home side’s lead held after Nguyen Dinh Bac’s second-half goal, and Vietnam closed out the match with the result intact. The final whistle confirmed a home win and a second overall victory for Vietnam this season.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Vietnam 1, Chinese Taipei 0. Interstat’s ELO system had projected Vietnam with a 65.6 percent probability to win. Vietnam had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of -2.5. The total score of 2 went over the over/under line of 3.5.