Dinh Luat - the "ageless" player

After leaving B.Binh Duong and retiring from the national team when the AFF Cup 2016 ended, many people thought that Luat would retire because at that time, he was already 33 years old.

However, with his good physical condition, Luat continued to express his desire to play football and the next destination of this former QK4 central defender is Ho Chi Minh City. Being from the same hometown and also having similarities in personality, Luat and Cong Vinh seem to be very compatible.
In the role of senior, in addition to playing well, Luat also shows himself to be very exemplary in life. No one else, Luat is the leader in almost every aspect in Ho Chi Minh City. That is also the reason, this year he has turned 35 but Luat continues to be trusted by Cong Vinh's team.

Dinh Luat (number 20) as captain did a very good job in the defense of Ho Chi Minh City last season. Photo: Internet

Talking about his former student, Coach Vu Quang Bao shared: Born into poverty, Luat is very conscious. Since he was a player of QK4, Luat was often very neat in his daily life and made constant efforts in his professional career. Willpower is the difference that helped Dinh Luat become a star at QK4 and later many other teams such as N.Sai Gon, Sai Gon Xuan Thanh, Hai Phong, B.Binh Duong and now Ho Chi Minh City. Luat is also a rare player, even at the age of 33, he was still called up to the national team. That was the AFF Cup 2016, Luat was still the main actor, playing extremely impressively. After this tournament, Luat also officially said goodbye to the national team.

With such thoughts, when he grew up, when the pressure of studying and taking exams was too much, Luat also reduced the time he spent playing football. Because his parents gave him a proper education, Luat also determined that he had to persevere and work hard to find a job, to help himself and later repay his parents.
However, due to his unsuccessful studies, after graduating from high school, Luat packed his bags and went to Ho Chi Minh City with the hope of finding a good job with immediate income to send back to his family. Wandering around many places but not finding a stable job, Luat decided to return home and study for the university entrance exam. With perseverance and hard work, that year, Dinh Luat passed the entrance exam to Vinh Technical Pedagogical College (now Vinh Technical Pedagogical University).
During his time as a student, Luat actively participated in Union activities, especially football. With a standard body and a bit of talent, Dinh Luat was discovered and joined the school's football team. At some amateur tournaments, Luat made a big impression on football players in Nghe An. Coach Vu Quang Bao, who was currently the coach of Military Region 4, was the one who discovered Dinh Luat. Under the guidance of Coach Vu Quang Bao, Luat soon became a pillar of the Military Region 4 First Division team. In 2007, everyone was surprised when Coach A. Riedl called Luat, a player who did not play in the professional level, to the national team to prepare for the ASIAD Cup held in Doha.

Dinh Luat in an aerial battle. Photo: Internet

Wanting to stay with his homeland, but due to changes at the top level, QK4 was sold, renamed N.Sai Gon and Luat and his teammates had to move to Ho Chi Minh City. Here, due to the harsh elimination mechanism, many former players of QK4 could not stay and returned. Luat alone still played steadily and showed his class. Dinh Luat's physique and smart playing style caught the eye of Mr. Thuy, who is famous for being generous. With the goal of making his team a big name in Vietnamese football, Mr. Thuy spent 9 billion VND to get the signature of this central defender after his contract with N.Sai Gon expired.