Completing the Vietnam National Team "AFF Cup 2018 version"

After 10 years of waiting, the Vietnamese team is back in the AFF Cup final and has a great chance to win the championship for the second time. Mr. Park is the "star of all stars" from planning the match preparation strategy, inspiring his students throughout the 90 minutes and making extremely precise tactical adjustments.

The 3-4-3 formation is considered the core of the Vietnamese team at this AFF Cup, although he has often switched to 4-1-4-1 or the "sub-variant" 5-3-2. Names such as goalkeeper Van Lam, 3 central defenders Ngoc Hai, Duy Manh, Dinh Trong, full-back Van Hau, Trong Hoang have been "defaulted" in coach Park Hang-seo's mind.

Que Ngoc Hai is becoming more and more mature at this AFF Cup. Photo: Internet

Up to now, Xuan Truong has played a total of 285 minutes at the AFF Cup 2018 and has not really been himself, the “faulty version” of the tournament. Improving the ability of midfielders Duc Huy, Hung Dung or Huy Hung is considered a better solution than changing the defensive effectiveness of the player from Tuyen Quang.

If he doesn't quickly improve his defensive skills, it's very likely that Xuan Truong will follow the path of Phan Nhu Thuat, a talented midfielder of SLNA.

Captain Van Quyet's winger position seems to have a worthy replacement, which is number 20 Van Duc. The ability to break through and create - the point where Van Duc is still inferior to his senior - has improved significantly at the AFF Cup 2018.

Meanwhile, the Nghe An player’s ability to score and defend is far superior to his seniors and is being “honed” by Mr. Park every day. The SLNA player is a cleaver, playing in many positions in the national team.

Veteran Anh Duc is having one of the most successful tournaments in the role of a striker. However, this player born in 1985 lacks stability. Having just shone in Bacolod (Philippines), Anh Duc has faded at My Dinh Stadium. Therefore, Tien Linh will be the choice in the near future for the senior position on the B.Binh Duong team.

The Vietnamese players stood firm after the tough performances of the Filipino players. Photo: Internet

Regarding personnel, Cong Phuong is a special case and the most difficult to use for the Vietnam national team at the present time. The HAGL player is a "nightmare" for teams of equal strength, because of his "unblockable, unstoppable" dribbling style.

Angry defenders are easily penalized by the referee when facing Cong Phuong, even a penalty. But with the superior team, the Vietnamese team needs counter-attack speed, and Cong Phuong is a "bottleneck" because of his dribbling and leading style of play that relies on individual technique.

Many times the Vietnamese team's goal was shaken because Cong Phuong lost the ball, in situations where the team was pushing forward to attack. Defensive ability has never been the strong point of the HAGL players.

Suppressing emotions is also a significant change of Vietnamese players at the AFF Cup. In general, hot heads like Trong Hoang and Ngoc Hai have restrained themselves very well against the tit-for-tat attacks of Stephan Schrock, Alvaro Silva, Reed, Iain Ramsay...

The physical strength of the Vietnamese team is what surprised the opponents at the AFF Cup 2018. In the two semi-final matches, despite having to endure malicious tackles from the opponents and being on the ground many times, Quang Hai, Van Hau, even Anh Duc and Trong Hoang remained steadfast. Even the Philippine players were "hit" by us, when central midfielder Manuel Ott (8) was injured.

There are still a few more adjustments for the Vietnamese team, the "AFF Cup 2018 version", to be able to lift the championship trophy, but just counting up to this point, Mr. Park's coaching tactics have captivated the hearts of many fans.