Coach Mai Duc Chung continues to lead the Vietnam National Team

(Baonghean.vn) - This afternoon (September 12), at the meeting to evaluate the performance of the Vietnam U22 team at the 29th SEA Games, VFF leaders decided to still choose coach Mai Duc Chung for the head coach position in the coming time.

The meeting was chaired by VFF General Secretary Le Hoai Anh, with the participation of Vice President Tran Quoc Tuan, Standing member of the Executive Committee Pham Ngoc Vien; Coaches Nguyen Huu Thang, Mai Duc Chung, Phan Thanh Hung, Le Huynh Duc (representatives, members of the National Coaching Council) also attended this meeting.

During the meeting, the parties reviewed and evaluated the performance of the Vietnam U22 team at the 29th SEA Games. In addition, the VFF also discussed the team's plans for the next phase, and the position of head coach of the national team was an important topic discussed at this meeting.

Coach Mai Duc Chung will temporarily lead the Vietnam national team in the upcoming matches while the VFF looks for a new head coach. Photo: Internet

Coach Nguyen Huu Thang did not attend the press conference. The press conference was chaired by VFF Vice President Tran Quoc Tuan. Also present were VFF General Secretary Le Hoai Anh, Nguyen Si Hien and Mai Duc Chung, two leading members of the National Coaching Council.

Regarding the reason for the failure of the U22 Vietnam team at the 29th SEA Games, Chairman of the National Coaching Council Nguyen Si Hien concluded: "Coach Nguyen Huu Thang used the wrong force. The ability to rotate players was not good to always maintain tactics and health. Coach Huu Thang made a big mistake in using Duy Manh in every match. There were players who were too tired to run and were not replaced. While the reserve and official forces were not different.

Mr. Nguyen Si Hien added: "Coach Huu Thang is confused in using players. That is a sign of immaturity and lack of experience. Coach Huu Thang should need more support."

Accordingly, the mandatory criteria for the national team head coach set by VFF are to have a professional coaching certificate (or equivalent), have been a head coach of a professional club (or national team), be good at English at work, and not have received any disciplinary action. Priority is given to coaches under 60 years old and who have been professional players.

VFF will screen the applications, send them to the National Coaching Council, and negotiate in order. After agreeing on the criteria, the General Secretariat will compile the statistics. Currently, VFF has many candidate applications for this position.

General Secretary Le Hoai Anh added: "Currently, no Vietnamese coach has met the standards of a professional coach (AFC Pro Licence). This is a criterion that will be applied from 2019. Currently, if an agreement is not reached with the new coach, there will be a "backward plan" in choosing a coach for the Vietnam vs Cambodia match this October." At the same time, the salary of the new head coach of the national team will not be disclosed.

Finally, VFF agreed that in case there is no new head coach, coach Mai Duc Chung will continue to be the head coach of the national team for the Vietnam vs Cambodia match. That is the match that decides the ticket to the Asian Cup.

In December, U23 Vietnam will participate in the U23 International tournament in Bangkok to prepare for the U23 Asian finals. Therefore, having a head coach as soon as possible will create conditions for the players to stabilize their competitive spirit. However, this is something that needs to be done carefully, in accordance with many established criteria.

Trung Kien