Asian Cup 2019: If Van Lam is number 1, then who is number 2?

Coach Park Hang-seo has called up five additional players to the national team's U21 squad, overlooking several already proven talents. This move by Coach Park is in preparation for the U23 Asian Cup qualifiers and the SEA Games to be held in 2019.

Age advantage

At just 21 years old, Bui Tien Dung has the advantage of being suitable for both of the aforementioned youth tournaments.

However, dedicating too much time to non-professional activities has caused Tien Dung to revert from his role as a "hero" at the U23 Asian Championship and the 18th Asian Games to a "traditional reserve" role. This season, Tien Dung only started 14 matches for FLC Thanh Hoa (11 V-League matches and 3 National Cup matches) but conceded 15 goals.

The fact that Tuan Manh was given the opportunity to play first in the friendly match against North Korea shows that the Khanh Hoa goalkeeper has been automatically assigned the number 2 position.

Having conceded 6 goals in just 3 National Cup matches, with B.Binh Duong being considered the main reason for the Cup's 1-3 defeat in the final, Tien Dung lost a lot of points. FLC Thanh Hoa is a team with many national team players and former national team players, but the fact that this goalkeeper conceded 9 goals in 11 appearances in the V-League is a figure that worries Coach Park.

If at the 2019 Asian Cup he wasn't even the second-choice goalkeeper and had a (albeit brief) debut, then in the U23 Asian Cup qualifiers and the 2019 SEA Games, the "national goalkeeper" had to start all over again, competing with his peers.

In the 2019 Asian Cup, when facing taller opponents like Iran, Iraq, or Yemen, Van Lam, at 1.88m, had a significant height advantage. Meanwhile, Tien Dung, who is only about the same height as Tuan Manh (1.81m), didn't have a physical advantage, so naturally, the competition had to be based on skill.

The fact that Tuan Manh was given the opportunity to play first in the friendly match against North Korea shows that this goalkeeper is Coach Park's first priority. This means that, in the mind of the South Korean coach, the Khanh Hoa goalkeeper has been automatically designated as the second-choice goalkeeper, replacing Van Lam if needed in the future.

In fact, Tuan Manh's performance still gives fans a sense of security with his timely positioning and solid goalkeeping, even when the opposing team isn't putting in a strong attacking effort.

Coach Park wanted to create the fairest competition among his players. Therefore, in the latter half of the second half, he gave goalkeeper Bui Tien Dung a chance. The Thanh Hoa player showed clear determination in this rare opportunity to start since the Vietnamese national team began its AFF Cup campaign.

Unexpected goal conceded.

In the 81st minute, North Korea was awarded a free kick right outside our penalty area. With North Korean players possessing good basic technical skills, this was clearly an excellent opportunity to score an equalizer.

Captain Jong Il Gwan stepped up and executed a near-perfect free-kick. The ball traveled with power and nestled into the far corner, too dangerous for the entire Vietnamese defense to handle.

Bui Tien Dung hasn't had many opportunities to showcase his abilities, but he conceded a goal after a very difficult free-kick from Jong Il Gwan of North Korea.

In that situation, Bui Tien Dung misjudged Jong Il Gwan's shooting angle. As he prepared to dive for the near corner, the opposing player twisted his ankle, sending the ball to the far corner, catching him by surprise and leaving him with no choice but to dive in desperation.

To be fair, Jong Il Gwan deserves more praise than Tien Dung, but Van Lam, with his long reach, has made numerous crucial saves in such situations. The only concern is that Tien Dung's touch might diminish due to a lack of regular playing time, a growing worry in Coach Park's mind. Not to mention the potential impact of individual mistakes in major tournaments on the young goalkeeper's career path.

Not many Olympic team goalkeepers get to be the starting goalkeeper for the national team, but if Tien Dung is relegated to the third-choice position, it's still a psychological disadvantage for him. With no other option, goalkeeper Tien Dung has only the path of diligent training and seizing the rare opportunities that Coach Park gives him.