Coach Troussier and players send New Year wishes for 2024; Qatar wins Asian Cup

Coach Troussier and the players send New Year wishes 2024

The Vietnam Football Federation homepage has just posted a video greeting the new year of Giap Thin 2024 from the team members. In it, Nguyen Filip and coach Philippe Troussier sent their wishes in Vietnamese to the fans.

In addition, female players such as Hoang Thi Loan, Duong Thi Van and Kim Thanh wished everyone good health and hoped that fans would continue to follow and support the Vietnamese football teams.

This year, men's football will go through many important tournaments such as the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, the U23 Asian Cup finals, and the AFF Cup. As for women's football, players do not have many tournaments except at the regional level, but 2024 is a transition year for the Vietnamese women's team to build the next generation under a new coach, replacing the retired coach Mai Duc Chung.

Reviewing the targets of Vietnamese football in the next 5 years

1. Timeline of the 9th VFF Congress (November 2022)

- Vietnam team

+ Strive to be in the Top 10 teams in Asia (building a roadmap to 2030).

+ Win the right to enter the third qualifying round of the 2026 World Cup, compete for the opportunity to attend the 2026 World Cup and aim to attend the 2030 World Cup.

+ Win the right to enter the Quarterfinals of AFC Asian Cup 2023 (not completed).

+ Win the right to participate in the AFC Asian Cup 2027 Finals.

+ Win the right to enter the final of AFF Cup 2022, 2024, 2026 (at least 1 championship).

- U23 Vietnam

+ Win the right to enter the final round and strive to achieve a high ranking at the AFC U23 Asian Cup 2024, 2026.

+ Successfully defend the SEA Games Gold Medal 2023, 2025.

2. Timeline of the 9th VFF Congress (October 2023)

- Vietnam team

+ Pass the group stage of Asian Cup 2023.

+ Enter the 3rd qualifying round of the 2026 World Cup.

3. Timeline of VFF Vice President Nguyen Xuan Vu answering the press (Source: Tien Phong, January 2024)

- Vietnam team

+ Enter the 3rd qualifying round of the 2026 World Cup.

+ Win a medal at AFF Cup 2024.

Qatar wins Asian Cup 2023

Qatar won the 2023 Asian Cup after defeating Jordan 2-1 in the final.

Akram Afif is Qatar's most prominent star at the 2023 Asian Cup. In the final match against Jordan on the evening of February 10, the striker who used to play for Villarreal continued to make his mark, helping the home team successfully defend their championship.

Akram Afif's attempt to break into the penalty area in the 20th minute drew a foul from a Jordanian defender. It was Qatar's No. 11 striker who converted the penalty kick to open the scoring.

The loss forced the Jordanian team to play offensively. Coach Hussein Ammouta's players immediately pushed up their formation and tried to pressure their opponents.

According to data from the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), Jordan outperformed their opponents in attack and possession. They had more possession, passed the ball more often and had more shots than Qatar.

After a few missed chances, Jordan equalized in the 67th minute. Yazan Al Naimat controlled the ball neatly and unleashed a powerful shot that the Qatar goalkeeper could not block. This was Al Naimat's fourth goal at the 2023 Asian Cup.

However, the excitement of the Jordan players was quickly extinguished by the second penalty. Ismaeel Mohammad was fouled in the box and Afif put Qatar ahead again.

Jordan tried their best to attack in the final minutes of the match but could not score. Not only that, they also conceded another goal. Afif once again earned himself a penalty and successfully converted the 11-meter kick to seal a 3-1 victory for the home team.

Qatar successfully defended their Asian Cup title. Their most prominent star, Akram Afif, won the title of top scorer and best player of the tournament.

Haaland makes Premier League history

The Norwegian striker set a record after Man City's 2-0 win over Everton in round 24 of the Premier League.

With his goal against Everton, Erling Haaland has reached 50 goals in just 50 Premier League starts. According to Opta, this is a statistic that no player in Premier League history can achieve.

Haaland's goalscoring prowess is truly impressive. Despite missing two months due to injury, the Norwegian has still scored 21 goals in all competitions for Man City this season, 16 of which have come in the Premier League, two more than Liverpool's Mohamed Salah.

With his form and fitness both at their peak, Haaland can repeat the feat of scoring 51 goals in 52 matches for Man City last season.

Talking about the time he had to leave the pitch due to a foot injury, Haaland said: "It was terrible. Even though he didn't like it, the injury will change his thinking, it makes you appreciate training every day more."

Regarding the relationship with De Bruyne, the star born in 2000 said: "I try to build a connection with every teammate on the pitch but with De Bruyne it's different. I know for sure that I will have the ball and everything will always go perfectly. I don't mean to criticize the other teammates but De Bruyne is really different."

"In the last five years, De Bruyne hasn't changed his style of play, so my job is just to come in and finish his passes," Haaland added.

3 points against Everton helped Man City rise to 2nd place in the Premier League with 52 points, 2 points behind Liverpool but having played one match less.

Sink Bayern, Alonso and his team create a turning point in the championship race

Although ranked behind Leverkusen, Bayern with a squad of many top stars is still rated higher than its opponent. However, what coach Thomas Tuchel and his team have shown can only be summed up in the word "terrible".

Bayern had 59% possession but failed to create a single good chance throughout the 90 minutes. Harry Kane "disappeared" in attack while on the two wings, Leroy Sane and Jamal Musiala were also completely blocked by Leverkusen's defenders. Bayern's deadlock was clearly shown through the expected goals (xG) index of 0.27, not even close to Leverkusen's odd number (1.76).

In the opposite direction, Leverkusen deployed a smooth, low-touch style of football called "Xabi - Ball" to easily escape the high-level attacks of the defending champions. With just two transitions on both flanks, Leverkusen earned 2 goals. In the 18th minute, Bayern's defense watched helplessly as Josip Stanisic comfortably charged up from the right wing, before shooting past Manuel from close range.

After scoring the opening goal, Josip Stanisic did not celebrate, because he is the player Leverkusen borrowed from Bayern Munich this season.

In the 50th minute, Leverkusen exchanged passes in midfield, before releasing the ball for Alejandro Grimaldo to shoot past Neuer for the second time.

After gaining a safe advantage, Leverkusen proactively retreated. The multi-layered defense arranged by coach Xabi Alonso did not give Bayern a chance to trouble goalkeeper Lukas Hradecky.

In the 90+5 minute, Manuel Neuer left his goal to attack but was unsuccessful. Jeremie Frimpong comfortably broke through and finished into an empty net, sealing a 3-0 victory for the home team at Bay Arena.

Leverkusen are unbeaten in their third consecutive match against Bayern, winning two of them and turning the Bundesliga title race around this season. Currently, coach Alonso's team is 5 points ahead of Bayern, while the season has 13 matches left.