Watch Quang Hai's opening goal in friendly match against Philippines Watch Quang Hai's stunning opening goal in the friendly match

In a practice match against the Philippines on December 31 in Doha, Qatar, Vietnamese midfielder Nguyen Quang Hai scored the opening goal after some slick passing starting deep inside Vietnamese territory.

The match played ahead of the AFC Asian Cup in the UAE from January 5 to February 1 ended with Vietnam winning 4-2.

Videos of the match went viral on the Internet. One YouTube video racked up more than two million views in three days.

Vietnamese readers writing into VnExpress said the passes reminded them of Spain’s tiki-taka style characterized by short passing and maintaining possession.

Other readers even compared the playing style to that of clubs such as Real Madrid and Barcelona.

Many were very hopeful of the Vietnamese team’s performance in the upcoming tournament.

For the Asian Cup, coach Park Hang-seo has rung in a few changes in the squad, leaving out some AFF Cup heroes including forward Nguyen Anh Duc and midfielder Nguyen Van Quyet and adding younger faces.

Asian games semifinalist Vietnam are in group D with Iran, Iraq and Yemen and kick off their campaign against Iraq on January 8.