Vietnamese football and things to do immediately after the AFF Cup

The fact that Vietnam national football team failed to pass the semi-finals against arch-rival Thailand shows the current strength of Vietnamese football, despite the success in the past 4 years in occupying the "leading" position in the upward trend when Mr.Park Hang-seoplaying the role of a trustworthy “captain”. But if we look closely, we can see that the story of Vietnamese football is not only related to Thai football, but also to Indonesia or Singapore when these football backgrounds are also moving and developing strongly.

To regain the regional throne, the Thai team, when gathering all the strong soldiers and generals, showed that defeating them is not easy, even if someone can make it difficult for Chanathip and his teammates in one half? The Vietnamese team can make it difficult for the Thai team in the second half of the first leg of the semi-final and the first half of the second leg of the semi-final, just as the Indonesian team can only make it difficult for the Thai team in exactly one half of the second leg of the final (all of which came when the Thai team was leading and they proactively retreated to protect the score). Otherwise, no matter what formation they play with, if they lack 3-5 positions considered to be pillars, everything will still go smoothly as they planned.

The strikers of the Vietnam National Team (in white shirts) just had a disappointing AFF Cup. Photo: The Vu - VNA

The results achieved by the Thai people come from the professional organization of the Thai League for many years now and the 2021 season, despite the complicated pandemic, still successfully reached the finish line instead of being abandoned like the V. League? From there, the Thai people have outstanding stars playing abroad such as Chanathip, Theerathon... in addition to calling back Thai expatriates such as Dolah, Bihr, Roller... making the already strong squad even stronger than its opponents in the region.

Meanwhile, the opponents ofVietnam National TeamLike Indonesia or Singapore, although they still have internal problems worth discussing, their progress is worth pondering and considering. After the success of Vietnamese football with the Korean coach, Indonesian football was more aggressive in inviting an even more "terrifying" coach, Mr. Shin Tae-yong, former head coach of the Korean national team, and immediately showed the talent of this strategist.

It is a long-term vision, a methodical choice and construction of the force and above all, the will to fight to the end in any situation. The Indonesian team trusts the young players, only keeping a few key players and calling up more Indo-origin players like Thailand. They dare to accept temporary defeat in the World Cup qualifiers, even in the AFF Cup, but will aim for success in the SEA Games, even the AFF Cup at the end of this year when the more they compete, the more mature they become.

The ball dispute between players of the Vietnam Team (red shirts) and the Thailand Team in the first leg of the semi-final. Photo: VNN

At the same time, after 4 AFF Cup championships, Singapore suddenly abandoned the trend of naturalizing players with great success and returned to "homegrown players" despite many difficulties. But as the energetic second leg of the semi-final match of Singapore despite losing a player to Indonesia, it can be seen that over time, this will be a formidable opponent for any opponent. It is worth mentioning that regardless of the "dynasty" of the coach, Singapore still plays with a unique style, not mixed with anyone else: playing high balls, making the most of set pieces, and exploiting the opponent's mistakes.

Watching the Singapore team play, it may not be attractive but it is extremely effective. They do not attack much, mainly playing defense-counterattack so they usually do not lose energy, and are capable of fighting until the last minute. Saying this is to remember that the Vietnam team recently, when they attacked continuously but could not score a goal, it meant that their will quickly decreased, leaving the back loose for the opponent to exploit. The first leg of the semi-final against Thailand is a typical example. Even against weaker opponents like Cambodia or Laos, the Vietnamese players lost more and more energy towards the end of the match, wanting to score more goals but "were powerless" as seen...

Dominating the entire match, the Vietnamese team still could not score against Indonesia. Photo: VFF

Obviously, the authorities, the coaching staff and each Vietnamese player have understood the lessons and quickly got into the non-stop cycle of regional and world football. Choosing the U21 team to participate in the upcoming U23 regional tournament is the right way, worthy of being welcomed and encouraged.

And we must actively search for and select talents to supplement the teams from domestic and foreign sources. More than ever, we must organize the V. League in a truly professional manner in all aspects, strictly implementing regulations on foreign players and young players in the club squads to both take care of the development of both football and the resources for the teams and the brands of the clubs, and send stars abroad to compete appropriately to improve their abilities and capacities...

We cannot delay even one day or one hour when regional football, despite being known as a “lowland”, is making unexpected progress in many different effective ways. Not only the Thais are back, but the Indonesians, Singaporeans… are also breathing down our necks to regain the number 1 position on the rankings./.