Mr. Duc refused to sell players to Japanese team

Feeling that the time was not right, the owner of Hoang Anh Gia Lai rejected the offer of Mito Hollyhock - the former club of coach Toshiya Miura.

Mr. Duc wants the players to gain more experience before considering going abroad. Photo: Duc Dong.

About two weeks ago, a representative of Mito Hollyhock personally came to Gia Lai to watch Hoang Anh Gia Lai players compete. At that time, Mr. Mitsushiro Obara - Technical Director of this club - said that they knew about Cong Phuong and Tuan Anh through the introduction of the coaching staff of the Japanese U19 team and planned to recruit and buy these players in the near future.

However, speaking to VnExpress recently, Mr. Duc said: “They raised the issue seriously, but I refused. Not only Cong Phuong and Tuan Anh, this team also wants many other young players, but I said that when this generation of players accumulates enough experience to compete at the top level, I will consider whether to sell or not. There is no rush at the moment.”

Mito Hollyhock Club representative during his visit to Pleiku Stadium in January. Photo: Dong Huyen.

The young players of Hoang Anh Gia Lai come from the first and second courses of the HAGL Arsenal JMG Football Academy. In the last two years, Tuan Anh, Cong Phuong, Xuan Truong, Dong Trieu... have made an impression in youth tournaments thanks to their technical playing style, modern thinking and dedication. In order to create conditions for these players to gain more practical experience, Mr. Duc decided to bring them to play in the V-League from the 2015 season.

After six rounds, coach Guillaume Graechen and his team have two wins and four losses.

“Experience is extremely important in football. I really want to equip the players with this before letting them go to more competitive environments. Besides, I don’t want to split up the group of players who have spent seven or eight years studying together. If we sell some players like Cong Phuong, Tuan Anh... who will the remaining individuals play with? Right now, if we just keep the group like this, wouldn’t it be better to play on the field on weekends amidst the cheers of tens of thousands of spectators?”, Mr. Duc said half-jokingly, half-seriously.

Tuan Anh, a promising and outstanding midfielder of HAGL, is being noticed by many teams. Photo: Duc Dong.

“Of course, in the future I will let my players go, once they have enough experience playing professionally. I don’t dream of big clubs but want to find them a moderate team, suitable for their level and playing style. To be honest, when going abroad, they have to be the main players, otherwise if they have to sit on the bench, it would be better to stay at home,” added the Vice President of the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF).

According to VNE