Former national team player Van Sy Hung: "The Vietnamese national team will win convincingly against Malaysia"

- Hello Mr. Van Sy Hung, how would you rate the performance of the Vietnamese national team in their opening match at the 2018 AFF Cup?

Former national team player Van Sy Hung. Photo: Provided by the interviewee.

To be honest, this was an uninteresting match, even though our team won. The home team, Laos, was too weak; the difference between the two teams was too great. The ball was almost entirely in Vietnam's possession, while the Laotian players only knew how to huddle in defense. Against such a weak opponent, in my opinion, the performance of Coach Park Hang Seo's players was only average. Our team should have won by a much larger margin.

- Could it be that the Vietnamese team hasn't unleashed their full potential, deliberately holding back their tactics in preparation for a decisive battle against Malaysia in the upcoming match?

I don't think so, because in this match, Coach Park used his familiar 3-4-3 formation, along with his best players. Besides, the first criterion for determining rankings in the group is goal difference, so it's unlikely the head coach instructed his players to play cautiously for fear of Malaysia figuring out their tactics.

The Vietnamese national team secured a 3-0 victory against Laos, a smooth start to the AFF Cup. Photo: Internet

The reason the Vietnamese team didn't play very impressively against Laos was partly due to the poor condition of the pitch. The passes and short passes from Van Quyet and his teammates often didn't go as intended.

- In your opinion, who is the best and worst player of the Vietnamese national team?

All the players on the Vietnamese national team played at an average or above-average level, with no significant differences between them. The defense didn't have much work to do, so it's difficult to accurately assess their performance. As for the attack, I think Trong Hoang, Quang Hai, and Anh Duc were the most outstanding. Van Quyet and Cong Phuong only played adequately, neither bad nor excellent. Perhaps we'll have to wait until the match against Malaysia to truly assess each player's form.

PV: How do you assess Malaysia – Vietnam's upcoming opponent?

Malaysian football has always been among the top teams in the region, on par with Vietnamese football. Both their national teams are undergoing a strong rejuvenation process and have achieved positive results. If I remember correctly, at the 2018 AFC U23 Championship and the 2018 Asian Games, the Malaysian U23 team also reached the knockout round. Although they only narrowly defeated Cambodia in their opening match, their strength shouldn't be underestimated. I think they, along with Thailand and Vietnam, are the three strongest contenders in this year's AFF Cup.

PV: Having previously faced Malaysia in the 1998 Tiger Cup, what do you see as their strongest point in their playing style?

With excellent physical fitness and an aggressive, fearless playing style, I've noticed that Malaysian football is undergoing positive changes after watching several recent matches. Currently, Malaysian football is seeing more technically skilled and intelligent players. For example, the player wearing number 11 (Safawi Rasid).

PV: Can you predict the outcome of the upcoming Vietnam - Malaysia match?

With the home advantage, Coach Park Hang Seo's team will secure all three points. If they score an early goal in the first half, the Vietnamese team will beat Malaysia by at least two goals. I believe our team will win convincingly against Malaysia.

Thank you for this conversation!