Dinh Trong tore ligament, out of SEA Games

The results of the scan of Tran Dinh Trong's left knee today, June 5, showed that he had torn his anterior cruciate ligament. The Hanoi FC center back will have to undergo surgery and will need at least six months to recover. This means that he will not be able to join U22 Vietnam at the 30th SEA Games in the Philippines at the end of the year.

Dinh Trong suffered the injury while trying to turn and change direction to tackle Chevy Walsh in the 0-0 draw between HAGL and Hanoi on May 31. The Vietnamese midfielder slammed his hands on the ground in pain and cried as he was carried off the field on a stretcher at the end of the first half. Dinh Trong had to wait until today, when the knee was no longer infected, to have an X-ray to assess the severity of the injury.

Dinh Trong's ACL tear is a big loss for Vietnamese football. Coach Park Hang-seo considers him a key player in the defense during the 2022 World Cup qualifiers and the 2019 SEA Games. Previously, the Korean coach had agreed not to call Dinh Trong up for the 2019 Asian Cup so that he could have time for minor surgery to prepare for the two campaigns.

Dinh Trong was used again by coach Park Hang-seo in the 2020 U23 Asian qualifiers last March. He started in the match against U23 Thailand and closely marked him, causing Supachai to get angry and hit him, then get sent off, contributing to Vietnam's big 4-0 win. After the match, Dinh Trong said he had not fully recovered, only playing at about 70% of his ability.

Hanoi FC said they will support Dinh Trong to get the best treatment. Most likely, this defender will go to Korea for surgery.