Vietnam wins Standard Chartered Trophy 2014 in Liverpool

LIVERPOOL: Vietnam defeated Singapore 1-0 in the final of the 3rd Standard Chartered Trophy to win the title at Anfield in Liverpool. The 5-a-side tournament that included 14 teams saw some thrilling football, as the home ground of Liverpool FC welcomed teams to its coveted pitch.

Team from Pakistan, Karachi United which participated in the tournament, could not qualify for the semi-finals despite having an encouraging start by defeating Bangladesh 2-0 in their first game.

Karachi United lost their next 4 games against Malaysia, UK, Hong Kong and Vietnam before winning the last pool game against Indonesia that was of little significance.

Singapore and Thailand qualified for the semi-finals from Group A whereas Vietnam and Hong Kong qualified from Group B. In the first semifinal Vietnam defeated Thailand 2-0 while the other semifinal between Singapore and Hong Kong was decided on the penalties after a 0-0 draw in the normal time. In the shootout, Singapore held their nerves to win the penalties in sudden death after both the teams scored their first 3 penalties. Final match saw some pulsating football being played by the two teams that was eventually won by a narrow margin of 1-0 by Vietnam.

Karachi United who had earlier won the qualifying tournament played in Karachi, fell short of expectations in a campaign that was marred by couple of crucial injuries to the team after the first game. Team captain Hamza Khan was impressive with 3 goals in 6 matches while Imran & Taha chipped in with 2 and 1 goal respectively.

The winning trophy was handed to the champions by Liverpool FC legends Robie Fowler & John Barnes who were impressed by the dedication and passion shown by the players who took part in this tournament.

Speaking at the closing ceremony of the Standard Chartered Trophy international tournament, which offered football fans a money-can’t-buy opportunity of playing on the pitch of Liverpool FC’s Anfield Stadium, Robie Fowler appreciated the efforts of Standard Chartered Bank & Liverpool FC to arrange such a tournament and assured that LFC will continue its effort to reach its global fan base and provide them similar opportunities in the future as well.

Replying to a question regarding the fan base of Liverpool FC in Pakistan, both Robbie Fowler and John Barnes said the club values such support and is well aware of the fan following in Pakistan, which is a reflection of Liverpool being a truly global football club that tries to keep a close connection with its fan base from all over the world.