18:00 November 20, U21 HAGL - U19 Korea: Rediscovering the past

Not simply defending the tournament championship, "Mr. Duc's children" must take advantage of this opportunity to regain what is called their ego.

In the memory of U19 Vietnam, now the generation of Cong Phuong, the haunting memory of their heaviest defeat in history was against their Korean counterparts. In Myanmar last October, carrying the great expectations of Vietnamese football lovers, U19 Vietnam had to lose 0-6 on the opening day of the U19 Asian Cup. That defeat crushed the dream of reaching the U20 World Cup. Vietnamese football returned to earth after a brief moment of glory.

Tuan Anh (middle) in the match between U19 Vietnam and U19 Korea at the 2014 AFC U19 Championship. Photo: Nhat Anh

The U19 Korean team now no longer has the names that haunt Cong Phuong and his teammates, but Coach Quoc Tuan's students must be eager to do something to restore the trust of home fans. After a season of testing the V-League, the young people in the mountain town must have matured. HAGL's experience in top-level competition is also better than their opponents, who are all 18 years old.

Coach Tuan and his players are eager to prove themselves in the eyes of their home fans. Saigon football fans also showed that they are ready to flock to the stadium to satisfy their curiosity and it has been more than a year since they have seen the talented young players of the past return to Thong Nhat. There are many reasons why Thong Nhat Stadium this afternoon held more than 10,000 fans.

HAGL’s popularity with Saigon fans is still strong, partly because they have been “hungry” for top-level football for too long. Before Cong Phuong and Tuan Anh went to Japan to study, many fans had to go to the stadium to see them perform with their own eyes.

Like HAGL, U19 Korea certainly does not want to lose face as the top youth team in Asia. They are still the champions of the U19 Asian age group and the way they passed the group stage to reach the U19 Asian Championship in Bahrain next year is also very convincing.

Recently in Thailand, U19 Korea won like cutting bamboo, destroying all opponents, scoring 26 goals and only conceding 4. Coach An Ik Soo and his team even surpassed host Thailand, the team that defeated U19 Vietnam in the recent U19 Southeast Asian final.

Having faced U19 Korea in a friendly match, Coach Pham Minh Duc highly appreciated the young players of the kimchi country. The physique with many players 1m80 tall will be a big challenge for the HAGL defense. Recently, the lesson of Korean Students in the friendly tournament BTV Cup has shown many Vietnamese fans the ability of Korean football.

To replace Tien Dung, coach Quoc Tuan called on young player Thang Toan, who has good height, to pair with Dong Trieu as a central defender, but the new player's ability is a question mark. Facing an opponent with overwhelming physique, HAGL must rely on its attacking strength to make up for the underrated defense. Tuan Anh, Xuan Truong, Cong Phuong, Van Toan, the attacking quartet that made up the HAGL brand, will have to prove themselves in this tournament.

The defending champion will compete with the defending U19 Asian champion, a match worth waiting for in a land where fans have not been able to enjoy top-level football for a long time.

According to TT&VH