Chinese Newspaper: Be careful with Cong Phuong; Five U22 Vietnam players called up to the national team

Chinese newspaper cautious with Cong Phuong in Vietnam national team

Chinese newspapers believe that Cong Phuong's return in October will be a big threat to the country's national team in the match againstVietnam National Teamin the third qualifying round of the 2022 World Cup.

“In October, if Vietnam's defensive players recover from injuries in time, plus the return of Cong Phuong, this will certainly be a big threat to the Chinese team,” wrote Sohu.

Despite the absence of many key players in the squad such as Duy Manh, Van Hau, Minh Vuong, Dinh Trong and Cong Phuong for various reasons, the Vietnam national team still had an impressive match despite losing 0-1 to Australia. Coach Park Hang-seo's team caused many difficulties for Australia.

Cong Phuong. Photo: Vy Vu

“The Vietnamese national team lost to Australia when they were missing key defenders like Doan Van Hau and Tran Dinh Trong due to injuries. Duy Manh was suspended. On the attack line, there was the absence ofCong Phuong. Vietnam is not strong in disputes, but they still have their own weapons. This team has quick passing situations and possesses the ability to counterattack at speed. These things once made the Australian defense falter", a Chinese newspaper assessed the performance of the Vietnam team in the match against Australia.

Sohu newspaper even appreciated what the Vietnamese team showed against Australia more than the Chinese team. “Vietnam made 11 shots in this match, of which 2 were on target. They were even denied a penalty in a controversial situation. Looking at China, we only had 7 shots when facing Australia. Of those 7 shots, not even one was on target,” Sohu analyzed.

The newspaper added: “Vietnam’s defense lacked many key players, but they still defended more tightly than Australia. This team only allowed Australia to shoot on target once, while the same number we received was 9. In addition, Vietnam’s counter-attacks were also of better quality.”

According to the schedule, the Chinese national team will face the Vietnamese national team in the third match of Group B of the 2022 World Cup qualifiers on October 7 in the UAE.

5 U22 Vietnam players were called up to the national team

To best prepare for the World Cup qualifying round taking place in October,Coach Park Hang-seoadded 5 players from the U22 team to the Vietnam team.

The added players are Nham Manh Dung (Viettel Club, striker), Tran Van Dat (CAND, striker), Le Xuan Tu (Hanoi Club, striker), Dang Van Toi (Hanoi Club, defender) and Lieu Quang Vinh (Da Nang Club, defender).

Manh Dung has an ideal height (1.8 m), always plays very strongly. He also plays well in the center back position. Photo: Minh Chien.

This is an understandable decision by coach Park as the Vietnamese team's defense force is thinner after injuries to Dinh Trong, Thanh Chung, Tien Dung and Van Hau.

Meanwhile, Manh Dung, Xuan Tu and Van Dat are potential young strikers who can become backup options for Tien Linh. In the most recent practice match, Xuan Tu also scored for the reserve team of the Vietnamese national team.

5 young players of U22 Vietnam will gather with the national team on September 16. At this time, both the Vietnamese team and the U22 team will have a break and gather again on the same day.

My Dinh Stadium's grass surface and VAR room were criticized, what did VFF say?

Criticism of the quality of the grass and function rooms at My Dinh Stadium has been widely reported after the match between Vietnam and Australia on September 7. Not only Vietnamese audiences but also Australian fans watching on TV said that the pitch was bad. In addition, reporters from several press agencies noted that the facilities at this facility were deteriorating and damaged.

Sharing about this issue, a representative of the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) confirmed that My Dinh Stadium is qualified to host the third round of World Cup qualifiers - Asia region. Accordingly, a team from the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) arrived in Vietnam on September 3 to inspect and confirm the ability to host matches at this location.

My Dinh Stadium was criticized for being ugly during the match between Vietnam and Australia.

"The conditions for the match preparation, including the playing field, lighting, etc., have been inspected daily by the match supervisor and the venue manager, and have been regularly discussed with the stadium management representative to make adjustments and ensure that the conditions for the match are adequate," said General Secretary of the Vietnam Football Federation Le Hoai Anh.

For the functional rooms serving the matches, AFC also inspected and selected suitable areas for use. VFF representative also said that these items will soon be upgraded and repaired and will certainly meet the requirements of organizing 2 home matches of the Vietnam team in November.

Previously, Director of My Dinh Sports Complex Nguyen Trong Ho affirmed that My Dinh Stadium is qualified to host regional and continental events. The stadium has been well maintained for 11 years, although repairs and replacements are still facing difficulties due to financial constraints.

Liverpool about to pocket 17 million pounds thanks to Coutinho?

According to Sport, Liverpool are facing the opportunity to receive an additional £17 million from Coutinho if this midfielder reaches the milestone of 100 matches for Barca.

Coutinho left Liverpool to join Barca in the January 2018 transfer window for an initial fee of £105 million. This amount will increase to £142 million depending on the Brazilian midfielder's contribution to the Catalan club.

Coutinho is a failed contract for Barca. Photo: Reuters

According to Sport, Barca had to pay Liverpool an additional £16.5 million, when the Brazilian midfielder reached 23 goals and 14 assists for the Catalan team in all competitions.

The newspaper also reported that if Coutinho reaches 100 matches for Barca, the Nou Camp team will have to pay Liverpool another £17 million. Currently, Coutinho has played 90 matches for Barca in all competitions.

Coutinho is one of Barca's disappointing signings. This player is not in coach Koeman's plans, but in the summer transfer window of 2021, the Catalan team cannot sell him. Currently, Coutinho still has a contract with Barca until 2023./.