Cong Phuong - a gamble for coach Park Hang-seo.

In principle, calling up Cong Phuong is nothing unusual – at least not this time, because time doesn't allow coach Park Hang-seo to experiment. If he's taking risks with injured players like Trong Hoang or Van Hau, then Cong Phuong's case will be less risky. Even without playing regularly, he still has to maintain the intensity of training in Belgium. That professional environment will certainly keep him in good shape, especially when training with the desire to play. The desire to play is exactly what coach Park needs if he decides to bring Cong Phuong on in the match against Thailand, should the situation be unfavorable.

This is a FIFA Day period. According to regulations, the maximum time a player can spend with their national team is only four days, including match days. During FIFA Day, coaches will use the full squad from the most recent match, especially if their team played well. The principle of "not changing the winning formula" is unchangeable for coaches. Since the King's Cup, the Vietnamese national team hasn't had any training camps for Coach Park Hang-seo to experiment, so the decision to call up 19 familiar faces in June is understandable.

Take the England team as an example. After their success at the 2018 World Cup, in their first UEFA Nations League group stage match against Spain, coach Gareth Southgate retained 17 players who had been named in the squad for the World Cup third-place playoff against Belgium three months earlier. If we assume that was during the summer break, keeping the squad intact was understandable. However, in the Nations League semi-final against the Netherlands in June, almost a year after the match against Belgium, England still had 14 players in their squad. The players who were dropped were mostly older veterans. While the comparison is flawed, coach Park Hang-seo's current team building approach is almost identical to Southgate's, both built upon the foundation of a previous U23 team.

Coach Park only has a maximum of 5 days before finalizing the squad for the trip to Thailand and can only use a maximum of 14 players. Therefore, excluding the case of forced substitutions due to injury, the 19 players at the King's Cup are already excessive. Players from HAGL such as Tuan Anh, Xuan Truong, or Cong Phuong... could be strategic reserves. Because, if Coach Park needs two or more options for a match, he will still prioritize those who are familiar with such urgent substitutions.

Previously, Vietnam had a habit of holding long training camps, at least two weeks, calling up more than 30 players to assemble a team. But that approach didn't get Vietnamese football anywhere. Former coach Alfred Riedl was the biggest opponent of this type of training camp because it only unnecessarily complicated his job. After repeatedly failing to convince him, the Austrian coach almost fixed the squad, leading many players to be nicknamed "Riedl's protégés" because they were automatically selected for the national team regardless of their form. There were public grievances from midfielder Vu Minh Hieu and later striker Le Cong Vinh against Coach Riedl stemming from this reason.

But this return of Cong Phuong is truly a huge gamble for coach Park Hang-seo.He cherishes Cong Phuong, that's undeniable. It's also hard to imagine a coach not appreciating a player who is so determined, full of positive energy, and... obedient. It's not unusual for a coach to give one or two players special treatment in their professional calculations. Or perhaps, Coach Park is trying to rectify Chairman Duc's mistakes in letting Cong Phuong go too far. Imagine Cong Phuong not being used by Sint-Truiden from now until the end of the year. Only during his time with the national team can he truly feel the rhythm of playing and make personal progress. It might not be an exaggeration to say that Coach Park is "saving" Cong Phuong's career.

But the statistics show that Công Phượng has played 28 minutes since the King's Cup. Therefore, let's hope Công Phượng is in good enough form to come on and make a difference in the match against Thailand, even if only in the final minute to take the decisive corner kick like Xuân Trường did in the King's Cup. Then Coach Park will be right. But if Công Phượng doesn't play, his presence on the team means taking away someone else's opportunity. Even worse, if there isn't a good result against Thailand, that's when fairness needs to be discussed. That should also be the last time Công Phượng is on the national team until he earns a starting spot in Belgium.

Therefore, Công Phượng's case is no longer a personal matter but a team issue – especially when Coach Park faces a match where he absolutely must succeed. His opponent, Coach Akira Nishino, has virtually no advantage. Thailand has 33 players, including 10 newcomers, and Coach Nishino has a maximum of only 5 days to both find a way to beat Vietnam and present a new image to the Thai public.

While the outcome of this match isn't a disaster for the losing team, it will answer a question: Does a top-class team need to adapt to circumstances, or is it simply better to have a stable squad of familiar players to suit their playing style?