Coach Park wants to launch an all-out attack against Cambodia; England in the same group as Italy and Germany in the Nations League
(Baonghean.vn) - Coach Park Hang-seo requires the Vietnamese team to win against Cambodia to enter the semi-finals convincingly. According to the draw results on December 16, England, Italy, Germany and Hungary are all in Group A3 in the tournament for European teams.
Coach Park does not want to draw with Cambodia
After a light, relaxing training session, and organizing sideline entertainment activities to relieve stress for the players, at the training session on the afternoon of December 17, Coach Park Hang-seo asked the whole team to focus on the goal ahead. That is the match against the Cambodian team in the final match of Group B, AFF Suzuki Cup 2020.
With the current situation in Group B, just one more point is enough for the Vietnamese team to qualify for the semi-finals. However, that is not the goal that Coach Park Hang-seo and his students are thinking about. In an interview with the press, Coach Park Hang-seo frankly expressed his opinion that he will focus on an all-out attack to win against the Cambodian team, thereby competing for the top spot in the group.
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| Coach Park puts on his shoes and enters the training ground with the players. Photo: VNE |
Coach Park Hang-seo also affirmed that he respects all opponents in the journey to defend the championship of the Vietnam National Team. The preparation for the match against Cambodia is therefore also carefully planned, similar to the way the Vietnam National Team prepares before any match.
In the afternoon training session on December 17, Coach Park spent a lot of time on the content of dividing the players to play against each other. He also asked his students to play football in a simple but effective way and to take advantage of opportunities to score goals.
England in the same group as Italy and Germany in Nations League
In this group, Germany has the most tradition. The previous generation of coach Hansi Flick and his team won 4 World Cups and 3 Euros. Italy is next with 4 World Cups and 2 Euros. England won the 1966 World Cup, while Hungary reached the final of the 1938 and 1954 World Cups.
The confrontation between two long-standing rivals, England - Germany promises to bring great attraction. England defeated Germany in the 1966 World Cup final and the round of 16.Euro 2021, but lost in the 1990 World Cup semi-finals, Euro 1996 semi-finals and the 2010 World Cup round of 16.
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| England lost to Italy at home in the Euro 2021 final. Photo: Reuters. |
England will also have the chance to take revenge on Italy, who beat them 3-2 on penalties in the Euro 2021 final at Wembley in July. Group A1 features Austria,Croatia,DenmarkandFrance. In particular, the confrontation between Croatia and France will recreate the 2018 World Cup final, where "The Rooster" won 4-2. France is also the champion of the 2020-2021 Nations League.
Czech,Switzerland,PortugalandSpainfall into group A2. Portugal and Spain will reenact interesting encounters like those in the 2010 World Cup round of 16 (Spain won 1-0), the Euro 2012 semi-finals (won on penalties) and the 2018 World Cup group stage (drawn 3-3). The two matches against Switzerland are also an opportunity for Portugal to take revenge for finishing last in the 2022 World Cup qualifying group stage.
Table A4 is the meeting place ofWales,Poland,NetherlandsandBelgiumThe first four Nations League group stage matches will take place in June 2022. The remaining two matches will take place in September. The semi-finals, third-place play-off and final will take place in June 2023.
Hanoi Club has no place in AFC Cup 2022
The Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) confirmed that Vietnam only has two slots left in the Asian Cup. HAGL Club will go straight to the group stage of the AFC Champions League (ALC), while Viettel will compete in the group stage of the AFC Cup (ACC).
"The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has regulations on the order of replacement. If the replaced teams do not participate, no more will be taken. Hanoi Club will not have a replacement slot," said a VFF leader.
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| Hanoi FC will not have a place in the 2022 AFC Cup after the four teams above them refused to participate. Photo: Quang Thinh |
So even if Hanoi FC is ready to participate in ACC, it cannot participate. Previously, Quang Ninh, Nam Dinh, Thanh Hoa and Binh Duong did not want to participate. According to AFC regulations, in the 2022 season, Vietnam will have one direct entry to the AFC Champions League group stage (the team ranked first in the National Championship), and two AFC Cup slots (the National Cup champion and the National Championship runner-up).
However, the 2021 National Cup was canceled midway and could not be completed. Quang Ninh Club was chosen to replace them in the ACC because they ranked 3rd on the rankings after the VFF recognized the 2021 V.League rankings.Due to financial crisis, Quang Ninh Football Company Limited could not maintain the team and was not licensed to participate in the 2022 season. VFF was forced to register Nam Dinh and Thanh Hoa clubs. The two teams ranked 4th and 5th have no plans to prepare for the continental competition next season. Therefore, both Nam Dinh and Thanh Hoa refused the opportunity to participate in ACC.
VFF asked for opinions from the 6th ranked team, Binh Duong Club. Coach Dang Tran Chinh and his team were not ready and were afraid of the Covid-19 epidemic. Therefore, VFF reported to AFC to consider the remaining ACC slot. It is regrettable that Vietnamese football lost a slot in the Asian Cup. It will affect the overall score and performance of Vietnamese football when AFC calculates points and allocates slots in the future.
