Coach Kim Sang-sik chooses new captain for Vietnam team; Messi is the best MLS player in 2024
Center-back Do Duy Manh is the Captain of the Vietnam National Team at the AFF Cup 2024; Former MU star named 5 players who are not suitable for Ruben Amorim; Messi is the best player in MLS in 2024... are notable sports news in the past 24 hours.
Coach Kim Sang-sik chooses new captain for Vietnam team
On the evening of December 6, the Vietnam National Team held a meeting to elect the executive committee for the AFF Cup 2024. Accordingly, central defender Do Duy Manh is the Team Captain.Vietnam teamin this tournament. The two vice-captains are Nguyen Tien Linh and Nguyen Quang Hai.
Duy Manh was once a member of the national team's executive committee under coach Park Hang-seo. He is no stranger to the new role. Meanwhile, Tien Linh and Quang Hai also had time to hold the captain's armband.
The decision of the players and the Vietnam National Team Coaching Board is based on the influence, professional contributions and leadership qualities on the field of the members of the executive board. Duy Manh shows good collective leadership ability, ready to call on his teammates on the field.
On December 6, the Vietnam team arrived in Vientiane, Laos to prepare for the match against the host team. Overall, the players are in the best physical condition after the long journey.
The training sessions for the two days (December 6-7) of the Vietnam National Team all took place at the training ground of the Lao Football Federation. This training ground is not equipped with lighting, so the training session of Duy Manh and his teammates had to take place between 4:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. to ensure lighting conditions.
However, this is not an obstacle for coach Kim Sang-sik and his team because the team has spent 2 weeks training, completed the preparation process and is ready to enter the tournament.
Nguyen Van Toan, Nguyen Van Vi and Nguyen Xuan Son quickly got into the rhythm with their teammates. In addition, the team also received good news when striker Pham Tuan Hai fully recovered from injury and actively participated in training sessions with the team.
Vietnam is in Group B with the Philippines, Indonesia, Myanmar and Laos. Coach Kim Sang-sik and his team aim to reach the final of the tournament. Vietnam will play their opening match against Laos on December 9.
AFF Cup 2024 breakthrough in VAR technology
After much effort, the AFF Cup 2024 Organizing Committee has agreed to apply the VAR system to all 26 matches of the tournament. This is also the first time that the number 1 football tournament in Southeast Asia has the presence of video technology to assist referees.
The system will be installed by a third party and will not use resources available in member countries. It is expected that each match in the group stage will have 10 cameras, increasing to 12 from the semi-finals.
With the application of VAR, the professional quality of the AFF Cup 2024 is expected to be improved. At the same time, the fairness and transparency of the tournament's matches will also be significantly improved.
This year, AFF has also gradually applied VAR to tournaments such as the Southeast Asian U19 Championship or the Southeast Asian Club Championship.
In Vietnam, VAR has appeared for 3 seasons in the V-League (end of the 2023 season, the 2023/24 season and the current 2024/25 season). Regular exposure to VAR in the V-League will help Vietnamese players feel less confused when competing in the AFF Cup 2024.
According to statistics on a Southeast Asian football forum, Vietnamese football has gone through 14 official matches of FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation that applied VAR, including the 2019 Asian Cup (1 match), the 3rd qualifying round of the 2022 World Cup (10 matches) and the 2024 Asian Cup (3 matches). Of these, the team lost 12, drew 1 and won 1. Of the losses, seven were awarded penalties.
At this year's AFF Cup 2024, the Vietnam team is in Group B, meeting Laos (December 9), Indonesia (December 15), Philippines (December 18) and Myanmar (December 21).
Former MU star names 5 players who are not suitable for Ruben Amorim
MU legend Rio Ferdinand recently named 5 players who are not suitable for new coach Ruben Amorim.
The new United boss is unbeaten in his first three games in charge of the club but suffered his first defeat in a 2-0 defeat to Arsenal. Of course, this is early days in the Amorim era and losing to an in-form Arsenal side is hardly a shock. However, it does underline the difficulty of the task facing the Portuguese as he seeks to restore former glories.
So far, Amorim has rotated the available options as he sees fit, with former United centre-back Rio Ferdinand suggesting the likes of Marcus Rashford, Alejandro Garnacho, Rasmus Hojlund, Joshua Zirkzee and Antony could face relatively uncertain futures in the system.
“I worry about whether these players fit what Amorim wants,” Rio said, “You look at Garnacho and Rashford. They could fit into the inside forward position and is that really where they would excel? Rasmus Hojlund, will he adapt? Antony hasn’t shown he fits the system yet, Zirkzee hasn’t shown yet.
Bayern set to renew contract with Alphonso Davies
According to Sky Sports journalist Florian Plettenberg, Bayern have made a big step forward in renewing the contract of left-back Alphonso Davies. “The negotiations are going smoothly and urgently. The basic details of the new contract have been agreed. There are only a few small details to discuss,” Plettenberg revealed on his personal page.
According to Plettenberg, Davies' new contract is quite long. In addition, the Canadian player has made financial concessions at the negotiating table. Bayern hopes to complete the extension with Davies before the new year. If not, the 24-year-old player can freely negotiate with other clubs from January 2025.
Alphonso Davies was brought to Bayern by former sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic in 2018. But after Salihamidzic left Bayern, Davies' future was also in doubt. Since the beginning of the year, there has been a lot of information about Real Madrid negotiating with the Canadian left-back.
However, Davies' convincing form this season has changed everything. Manager Vincent Kompany is keen to have the 24-year-old's long-term service. Davies has become an irreplaceable link on Bayern's left flank, making 19 appearances since the start of the season, providing 3 assists.
Alphonso Davies joined Bayern in 2018 and has played 214 games for the Bavarians and scored 11 goals. The Canadian player currently earns 7 million euros/year, which is average at Bayern.
Messi is the best MLS player in 2024
Lionel Messi has won the Landon Donovan Trophy, the award given to MLS player of the year. The Argentine star has been the center of attention in the competition for the award thanks to his outstanding performances for Inter Miami.
With Messi's explosion, Inter Miami has earned 74 points after 34 matches and is leading the MLS 2024 Eastern Conference standings. However, in the first round of the MLS Cup 2024 playoffs, the 8-time Golden Ball winner and his Inter Miami teammates were eliminated by Atlanta United.
In the top flight of the United States, Messi has scored 21 goals, becoming the second highest scorer in the tournament so far, along with teammate Luis Suarez and Denis Bouanga, from Los Angeles FC. In addition, the reigning world champion has contributed 11 more assists for Inter Miami.
MLS organizers prepared a ceremony to present the award to the Argentine star. Notably, Inter Miami fans formed the letters MVP, the acronym for "best player" in Portuguese, on the team's field to honor Messi.
