Player Vo Ngoc Toan - a strange bird!

(Baonghean.vn) - After two pillars Nguyen Quang Tinh and Ngo Hoang Thinh left SLNA, the concern about the midfield of the Nghe An team really gave coach Ngo Quang Truong and fans a headache. However, after 6 rounds of V.League, the name Vo Ngoc Toan has reassured the coaching staff as well as the Nghe An fans.

Born in 1994 in Quynh Luu, he joined Song Lam in 2008 with his cousin Vo Ngoc Duc. With the guidance of his teachers and his constant efforts in training, Toan has shown himself to be a true talent of Song Lam's youth.

A year later (2009), Toan was trusted to be the captain of U15 SLNA at the National U15 Finals held in Vinh City. At home, although U15 SLNA did not achieve a satisfactory result, the midfielder wearing the number 8 shirt of the home team left many good impressions. On the SLNA Club forum, there were many compliments for Toan's performance.

With constant development, Toan continued to be part of the SLNA U17 team participating in the National U17 Finals, held in Da Nang. In that tournament, the player from Quynh Luu won the title of top scorer with 4 goals.

In 2013, the National U19 Finals were co-hosted by Gia Lai and Kon Tum. In this tournament, Toan continued to wear the captain's armband of U19 SLNA. He and his teammates played excellently and participated in the final match (losing to U19 Khanh Hoa after a penalty shootout).

Also in 2013, Toan participated in the National U21 Finals with U21 SLNA in Hai Phong. That was a tournament where he did not play well because he had to play as a striker, a position that was not his forte. After finishing his journey with U21 SLNA at the Finals, Toan returned to train with the youth team.

In 2014, for the first time in his football career, Vo Ngoc Toan won his first championship after many missed appointments, after U21 SLNA defeated U21 HN.T&T in the final match with the only goal by Ho Phuc Tinh.

At the end of 2014, Toan was promoted to the first team to prepare for the 2015 season. Continuous injuries made it very difficult for him to play. Besides, Quang Tinh, Hoang Thinh, or Ngoc Hai took turns for the two central midfield positions, Toan only occasionally got to play and rarely left a clear mark. It was not until round 14 of V.league, in SLNA's away match against B.Binh Duong at Go Dau stadium, that Toan scored his first goal in SLNA's first team shirt. Those were the rare shining moments of Vo Ngoc Toan in V.league 2015.

Player Ngoc Toan shines rarely in SLNA shirt in 2015 season

Entering the 2016 season, the two seniors Quang Tinh and Hoang Thinh went to other teams, Ngoc Hai was suspended, Sy Sam and Khac Ngoc were still just talents that refused to grow, so Toan was the best option. Inheriting the number 7 shirt from his predecessor Ngo Hoang Thinh, Toan took on a not small mission in SLNA's squad this season.

Observing the recent matches, everyone can see the remarkable maturity of the midfielder from Quynh Luu. Watching him play, there is something similar to the playing style of Nguyen Minh Chau (Hai Phong). Playing in the anchor position, Toan is an extremely solid stopper in the defense system of the Nghe An team. His brave and clever one-on-one battles always make the opposing players wary and frustrated. His reading of the situation and smart movements always make him appear at every hot spot of the match. Just look at how miserable Trong Huy, Tan Tai (Binh Duong), Ngoc Duy (Sai ​​Gon FC), Hai Huy, Mac Hong Quan (Than Quang Ninh)... are in their battles with the player wearing the number 7 shirt.

Besides, Toan also showed his ability to recover the ball very well. Having played in different positions in the attack, Toan kept the ball very calmly, he was never passive in situations where the opponent players surrounded him.

Although playing in a purely defensive role, Toan has very soft and delicate passes. Remember in the match against Than Quang Ninh, Toan was the one who passed the ball extremely sensitively to Cao Xuan Thang facing goalkeeper Tuan Linh, Odat scored the opening goal with a rebound after Xuan Thang's shot was blocked by Tuan Linh. That was a move that surprised the defense of the mining team.

With what he is showing, Vo Ngoc Toan is one of the trump cards that Coach Ngo Quang Truong has. Even though he has received many compliments from the coaching staff, teammates and fans, Toan still modestly said: "I still have to try harder to practice". Hopefully, Toan will go further in his career.

Le Thanh Hung

(Chi Khe - Con Cuong)