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

Coach Park Hang-seo has called up 5 additional players to the national U21 team, leaving out many proven talents. This move by Coach Park is to prepare for the U23 Asian qualifiers and SEA Games to take place in 2019.

Age advantage

With the advantage of only being 21 years old, Bui Tien Dung is suitable for both youth tournaments mentioned above.

However, spending a lot of time on non-professional activities has caused Tien Dung to return from the role of "hero" at the U23 Asian Cup and Asiad 18 to the role of "traditional reserve". This season, Tien Dung has only been the main goalkeeper for FLC Thanh Hoa in 14 matches (11 V-League matches and 3 National Cup matches) but has conceded 15 goals.

The fact that Tuan Manh was allowed to play first in the friendly match with North Korea shows that Khanh Hoa's goalkeeper has been assigned the number 2 position.

The fact that he only played 3 National Cup matches but conceded 6 goals, which was considered the main reason for the Cup going to B.Binh Duong in the final match losing 1-3, caused Tien Dung to lose a lot of points. FLC Thanh Hoa is a team with many national and former national players, but in the V-League, this goalkeeper conceded 9 goals after 11 matches, a number that made Mr. Park worried.

If at the 2019 Asian Cup, he did not get the second reserve position and had a debut (albeit short), then in the 2019 U23 Asian qualifiers and SEA Games, the "national goalkeeper" had to start over, competing with his peers.

Asian Cup 2019 when facing tall opponents like Iran, Iraq or Yemen, with 1m88, Van Lam has a height advantage. While Tien Dung is only the same height as Tuan Manh (1m81) and has no advantage in physique, of course he has to compete in expertise.

The fact that Tuan Manh was allowed to play first in the friendly match with North Korea shows that this goalkeeper is the first priority for Mr. Park. That means, in the mind of the Korean coach, the goalkeeper of Khanh Hoa has been assigned the number 2 position to replace Van Lam if needed in the near future.

In fact, Tuan Manh still leaves fans with a sense of security with his ability to enter and exit properly and his solid ball-catching style, even though the opposing team does not attack with all their might.

Mr. Park really wanted to create the fairest competition among his students. So in the second half, he gave the opportunity to goalkeeper Bui Tien Dung. The Thanh Hoa boy showed his determination in the rare time he was on the field as a starting goalkeeper since the Vietnam national team entered the process of conquering the AFF Cup.

Unexpected loss

In the 81st minute, the North Korean team was awarded a free kick right outside our penalty area. With the North Korean players having good basic technical foundation, this was clearly the best opportunity to bring home an equalizer.

Captain Jong Il Gwan stepped up and executed a near-perfect shot from the wall. The ball went hard and into the far corner, so dangerous that the entire Vietnamese defense was helpless.

Bui Tien Dung did not have many opportunities to show his ability, but conceded a goal after a difficult free kick from North Korea's Jong Il Gwan.

In that situation, Bui Tien Dung “read” and misjudged Jong Il Gwan’s shooting angle. In the jump-up motion, Dung was ready to fly to the near corner, but the other team bent his ankle to send the ball to the far corner, surprising him and forcing him to fly in despair.

To be fair, Jong Il Gwan should be praised more than Tien Dung, but Van Lam, with his long arms, has saved many times in situations like that. It's just that the worry that Tien Dung's sense of playing football will be dulled when he doesn't regularly wear gloves is gradually appearing in Mr. Park's mind. Not to mention that personal mistakes in big arenas also affect this young goalkeeper's career path.

Not many Olympic goalkeepers are allowed to start for the national team, but if Tien Dung has to play third place, it will still be detrimental to his mentality. With no other choice, goalkeeper Tien Dung can only practice diligently and seize the rare opportunities that Mr. Park gives him.