Vietnam team beat Cambodia team: Should we laugh or cry?

(Baonghean.vn) - Winning 2-1 against Cambodia in the 2019 ASIAN Cup qualifiers, however, this match left fans with extreme disappointment and worries for the national team in the future.

Personnel question mark

The experts' questions about the confusion in the personnel call-up of coach Mai Duc Chung are completely reasonable. First is the call-up of a player who has not recovered from injury, Vo Huy Toan. Then Que Ngoc Hai also cannot join the team for the same reason. However, the presence of many U22 Vietnam players who have just gone through a haunting SEA Games, unstable spirit and physical condition is inevitable.

Not only did they not have a clear grasp of the players' form and situation, the framework that coach Huu Thang had built for more than a year was abandoned, but the old assistants of the national team were also gone, which could easily cause the Vietnamese team to lose its strength.

Vietnam's defense appeared confused by Cambodia's fast playing style. Photo: VFF.

Normally, if an interim coach does not have much time to get acquainted with the team, they will keep the assistants of their predecessor. Because the assistants are the ones who follow the head coach closely to analyze and calculate the performance and fitness of the players. Unfortunately, coach Mai Duc Chung did not do that.

Team formation

Coach Mai Duc Chung highly appreciated Cambodia's attacking power when they played at home and on artificial turf, so he arranged two defensive midfielders, Huy Hung and Hoang Thinh. However, these are two players who are not capable of controlling the game and launching attacks. Without someone holding the ball, of course the coordination from the middle of the field will be broken. In the context that Cong Phuong became a disappointment when he did not "supply" Van Quyet up front, Vu Minh Tuan had to retreat very deep to support the defense and get the ball.

Midfielder Quang Hai saved the Vietnamese team from a humiliating draw. Photo: VFF

In defense, fortunately Ngoc Thinh had an excellent match and coach Mai Duc Chung promptly withdrew Van Thanh to add an experienced defender, Au Van Hoan. Otherwise, the youth and inexperience of the Vietnamese defense would have conceded more than 1 goal.

Who dares to receive the seal?

Coach Mai Duc Chung’s temporary acceptance to lead the national team is a remarkable act of responsibility. However, after this match, the Vietnam Football Federation will certainly have to look for a suitable replacement. The most important thing is that this coach must know how to inherit what his predecessor has built and filter out the remaining weaknesses.

Coach Mai Duc Chung will not continue to lead the Vietnam men's national team. Photo: VFF

For a foreign coach, this is a difficult task. As for domestic coaches, the limited patience and pressure of Vietnamese football achievements always make them hesitate to join the national team. At present, there are many coaches capable of leading the national team, but the way VFF does things has made them not interested in contributing to the country. Following the 2-year cycle of changing a coach, Vietnamese football will forever follow the same path and the head coaches will not have enough time to build a new "empire" of their own.

Surely after the humiliating 2-1 victory over Cambodia, a part of the fans will remember Coach Nguyen Huu Thang and his previous emotional attacking style. But unfortunately, Mr. Thang was unlucky, his chance was over and because of his pride, he resigned. Vietnamese football and the national team will look to the future with a not-so-optimistic view./.

Trung Kien