Coach Nguyen Huu Thang and the career of being a daughter-in-law to hundreds of families

(Baonghean.vn) – Being the head coach of the national team, not only must one achieve the achievements set by the VFF, but for the fans, the team must also have all the players they love, must always win, win beautifully and play well.

The first gamble...

It should be remembered that Coach Nguyen Huu Thang accepted to lead the national team in the context of Vietnamese football not yet being shaped for development. Or more precisely, the development between clubs was uneven, and the national championship was of very low quality.

At the AFF Cup 2016, the Nghe An coach called up mostly players from Nghe An, SLNA players who have become famous and are currently shining in other clubs. Except for Nguyen Manh, Ngoc Hai and Phi Son. However, only goalkeepers Nguyen Manh and Ngoc Hai won the starting positions.

Coach Nguyen Huu Thang needs time to bring Vietnamese football to success - Photo: Trung Kien

Everything was going smoothly until players like Nguyen Manh, Dinh Dong made mistakes in the second leg of the semi-final against Indonesia, and before that, Dinh Luat. Of course, all the criticism fell on the head coach of the national team, Coach Huu Thang, but in fact, he had completed his mission.

That is how he maximized the strength of a team. On paper, the mission of the coach born in 1972 is to lead the national team to the semi-finals of the AFF Cup 2016. The goal that Vietnamese football set is to reach the final match. So even though he failed, there is no way that coach Huu Thang will have to withdraw from the national team chair.

Now, if we are allowed to say the word “if only”, it is clear that the Vietnam national team under coach Huu Thang is still unlucky. The first misfortune is the thought of differentiating between players from Nghe An or national team players. Having worn the national team shirt, it means they are worthy and are a source of pride for all, not just for themselves. And if only, after so many periods, we had a psychologist for the national team. If only technical director Jurgen Gede and expert Martin Forkel had come to Vietnam sooner.

No matter what, failure is still failure. In football, people only remember the winners, not many people remember and support those who are doing everything they can for Vietnamese football like coach Nguyen Huu Thang.

SEA Games is the last gamble

Through the match against Afghanistan and the upcoming match against Jordan, coach Nguyen Huu Thang clearly showed his intention to rejuvenate the team, aiming at the arenas that VFF has oriented.

And when there are only 2 SLNA faces, Ngoc Hai and Van Khanh, with U22 being Van Khanh and Tuan Tai, there is certainly no favoritism here. Coach Huu Thang surprised everyone when he called up 7 players from U20 Vietnam. And maybe their level and experience cannot be compared to the senior players who have fought for many years in V.League, but for the SEA Games, the team needs them, at least 2 faces Quang Hai or goalkeeper Tien Dung.

If the team fails, coach Nguyen Huu Thang will be the first to take responsibility - Photo: Trung Kien.

Coach Huu Thang still has one more chance, or more accurately, one more gamble at the SEA Games. This is just a regional tournament, but it is a playground that we have missed too many times. For Coach Huu Thang personally, this is a debt of honor in his career as a player and as a coach.

What is the basis for the military leader to aim for that goal? He has for himself the most necessary things, from Insta technology, foreign assistants, technical directors, and personnel that he has full authority to decide. Calling this a gamble, not only because the element of luck is indispensable for success.

At the U23 to National Team level, Vietnam does not have a true striker. At the National Team level, we can only rely on a seasoned player like Van Quyet, and at the SEA Games, who else can we rely on but Cong Phuong, Van Toan or Ha Duc Chinh, players who are not yet complete in all aspects.

Another factor that makes coach Huu Thang more risky with his gamble is the loneliness and the insults from the fans. Each coach has a point of view, a calculation and a working motto. The ultimate goal is to bring Vietnamese football to success, to maximize its strength. There is also a large part of public opinion, they are too delusional about the strength of Vietnamese football. Whether it is Toshiya Miura or Huu Thang, pleasing fans or public opinion is the shortest path to failure.

Being a coach in Vietnam is no different than being a daughter-in-law to a hundred families./.

Trung Kien