Vietnam’s Dinh Bac, Xuan Son lead 2026 ASEAN Cup golden boot race

Vietnam produced an outstanding performance last night, defeating Thailand 2-0 at Bangkok’s Rajamangala Stadium in the first leg.

Nguyen Hai Long and Nguyen Quang Hai scored for head coach Kim Sang Sik’s side.

Both players came on in the 58th minute.

Just four minutes later, Hai Long received a clever backheel from Dinh Bac before firing a diagonal shot into the net to open the scoring.

In the 68th minute, Quang Hai volleyed home from a tight angle following a pass from Do Hoang Hen to seal Vietnam’s 2-0 victory.

Although he did not score, Dinh Bac made a decisive contribution with his assist for Hai Long.

He and naturalized striker Xuan Son currently have five goals each after seven appearances, one goal ahead of the chasing pack.

Indonesia’s Mitchell Baker and Myanmar’s Win Naing Tun each scored four goals in four matches.

However, neither can add to their tally after their teams were eliminated in the group stage.

Ilhan Fandi also scored four goals, but Singapore’s campaign ended in the semifinals.

That leaves Thailand striker Teerasak Poeiphimai as the only player still capable of directly challenging Vietnam’s leading duo.

Poeiphimai scored four goals in seven matches and will have one final opportunity in the second leg to draw level or move ahead.

Nevertheless, the advantage remains with Dinh Bac and Xuan Son, as both could feature again when Vietnam host Thailand at My Dinh Stadium on August 26.

For Xuan Son, the tournament also offers a chance to claim the Golden Boot for a second consecutive edition.

He scored seven goals to win the award at the 2024 ASEAN Cup.

The individual scoring race will be another major talking point in the second leg, alongside Vietnam’s bid to retain their ASEAN Cup title.