Cong Phuong, Xuan Truong, Van Lam: Fire tests gold!

1. When Soukaphone Vongchiengkhem fired a beautiful long-range shot beyond Dang Van Lam's reach and sealed a 3-0 victory for Chainat Hornbill, many Vietnamese football fans felt a sadness mixed with... indignation that was hard to understand. It cannot be confirmed that the "Lao Messi" will be more successful in the Thai League than the two Vietnamese players, but at least he has left a more obvious mark.

It was not difficult for Van Lam to take the official position in the Muangthong United goal, because of his special position when he was invited. But the problem is that football is a team sport, and even though Lam has performed very well, he cannot pull the whole team in crisis up. The recent loss to bottom team Chainat is a proof when 2/3 of the goals conceded were due to serious mistakes by the defenders and midfielder Lee Ho.

In addition, star Aung Thu has suffered an unbelievable decline, while Charyl Chappuis has even lost his position. As a result, Muangthong is second to last in the rankings, and has conceded the 4th most goals in the Thai League with 9 goals, only less than Trat, Ratchaburi (10), and Chonburi (14).

Van Lam maintains excellent form in goal but his teammates at Muangthong United are not.

In contrast to Muangthong, Buriram is leading the Thai League, but sadly, Xuan Truong has not made a mark in that success. He played only 2/7 matches (111 minutes, and was substituted), and Buriram drew all. Compared to Soukaphone (played 205 minutes, scored 1 goal), Xuan Truong had a worse start in the Thai League.

2. Cong Phuong chose a tournament that was more difficult than the Thai League. At Incheon United, he scored in friendly matches, tried his best when he was put on the field but did not make a specific mark. When Phuong played the full 90 minutes, the home team lost heavily to Daegu and dropped to second to last place.

Cong Phuong started in Incheon's defeat to Daegu.

What is the way out for all three stars of Vietnamese football? For Van Lam, perhaps the problem lies with his teammates as well as his position on the coaching bench (coach Pairoj Borwonwatanadilock has just resigned) rather than his class and experience.

At Buriram, the central midfielder position is a fierce battle with tough opponents such as captain Suchao Nutnum, vice-captain Jakkaphan, and Japanese player Hajime Hosogai, while Truong himself has not had stable performance for nearly a year.

As for Cong Phuong? It can be seen that coach Jorn Andersen intentionally did not rush to use “number 23”, so that he could gradually adapt and not have to bear too much pressure from expectations.

Every difficulty is just a challenge, and only those with enough talent and determination deserve to reap success. In this regard, Van Lam deserves to be expected to succeed the most. His journey from an abandoned young talent to the number one goalkeeper in the Vietnamese national team is a testament to that.