Cerezo Osaka coach 'particularly impressed' with Cong Phuong

Following the friendly draw at Hang Day Stadium on the evening of December 17th, coach Kazuhiro Murata praised coach Toshiya Miura and Cong Phuong.

“I was particularly impressed with player number 10 (Cong Phuong). He held the ball securely and moved cleverly,” coach Kazuhiro Murata shared after the match at Hang Day Stadium. “Coach Toshiya Miura seemed to have studied us very carefully, knowing our weaknesses, and he instructed the number 10 to constantly exploit the gaps in our defense. One thing that was especially noticeable was that on the field, this captain was trusted by his teammates, who passed the ball to him a lot.”

Despite not scoring, Cong Phuong received the highest praise from the Cerezo Osaka coach.

In the match against Cerezo Osaka, Cong Phuong wore the captain's armband. However, this does not mean he will be the captain of the Vietnam U23 team at the AFC U23 Asian Championship finals in Qatar next month.

“This is the third match for the Vietnam U23 team in preparation for the U23 Asian Championship finals, and in each match I appoint a different player as captain. Cong Phuong is a candidate for the captaincy, but I will observe and evaluate him further, and I will decide who to give this role to in another month,” Coach Miura revealed.

In the match at Hang Day Stadium, the Vietnam U23 team had an exciting back-and-forth game against Cerezo Osaka. Twice trailing, Coach Miura's team successfully equalized both times. The goalscorers for the home team were defender Manh Hung (24th minute) and striker Van Toan (70th minute).

"My players didn't perform to their full potential in this match. The Vietnamese U23 attack was very strong and played well, making it difficult for my players," said coach Kazuhiro Murata.

Cerezo Osaka is a team currently playing in J-League 2. At Hang Day Stadium, coach Kazuhiro Murata used six players from last season's first team and one player who will be promoted for the 2016 season, along with several members of Cerezo Osaka's U23 team.

According to VNE