HAGL - SLNA: Who will 'replace' Tran Dinh Hoang?

Since returning after more than a year of injury, the player born in 1991 has always been the first choice of coach Nguyen Duc Thang in the right-back position of the Nghe An team. What Tran Dinh Hoang has done in the 2018 and 2019 seasons, up to this point, is very commendable.

The defender nicknamed “the man without lungs” has not missed a single minute in this year’s V.League. Playing 16/16 matches, with more than 1,440 minutes (the most in SLNA). The solidity of the Vinh team’s defense is largely due to the defender wearing the number 6 shirt. Therefore, the absence of the 28-year-old player is a difficult problem for coach Nguyen Duc Thang in the match against HAGL.

Tran Dinh Hoang will have to serve a suspension because he has received 3 yellow cards. Photo: Archive

The question is who will replace Tran Dinh Hoang in the upcoming match at Pleiku Stadium? Coach Nguyen Duc Thang currently has 5 players who can take on the right-back position: Nguyen Sy Nam, Pham The Nhat, Pham Xuan Manh, Ho Sy Sam and Tran Dinh Dong. Each player has his own strengths and weaknesses. In many aspects, the following 3 players are the most serious candidates to "replace" Tran Dinh Hoang.

First is Nguyen Sy Nam, a player born in 1993 who specializes in playing in the right-back position. However, because he cannot compete with his senior Tran Dinh Hoang, Nguyen Sy Nam often has to be a friend of the bench. Therefore, Tran Dinh Hoang's suspension is an opportunity for the defender from Anh Son to play in his favorite position.

Nguyen Sy Nam has a strong physical foundation and plays enthusiastically. However, the ability to support the attack of the player wearing the number 22 shirt is still ineffective, especially in cross situations. Besides, the lack of playing time will greatly affect Nguyen Sy Nam's performance, for example, his ball feeling. It is not easy for the SLNA coaching board to put their trust in Nguyen Sy Nam in the match against the mountain town team.

The second candidate is Pham Xuan Manh. There is no doubt about Manh "Kalou"'s ability and suitability for the right-back position. The player born in 1996 has played successfully on the right side of the defense for SLNA and U23 Vietnam. It is no coincidence that coach Park Hang-seo often calls Pham Xuan Manh up to the national team.

Pham Xuan Manh once played impressively as a right-back. Photo: Archive

Most likely, coach Nguyen Duc Thang will choose the Yen Thanh player to "replace" Tran Dinh Hoang, in order to neutralize the sharp strikers on the left wing of HAGL, Vu Van Thanh, Le Duc Luong... In case Pham Xuan Manh is arranged to play in the right-back position, the left-back position will be returned to Tran Dinh Dong, who had to sit out the match against Saigon.

The third candidate is Pham The Nhat. The defender wearing the number 3 jersey is quite a versatile player. In addition to the central defender position, Pham The Nhat has also been occasionally arranged by coach Nguyen Duc Thang in the right-back position in previous matches. It is worth mentioning that Pham The Nhat has not shown much in the position that requires mobility between attack and defense. It seems that the possibility of Pham The Nhat playing from the start in the right-back position in the match against HAGL is not really high.

Most likely, Pham Xuan Manh will be the player to replace Tran Dinh Hoang in the right-back position of SLNA in the away match against HAGL in round 17, taking place at Pleiku Stadium on the afternoon of July 21./.