Lam Tan - Keeping a Passion Alive

(Baonghean)Along with Văn Quyến, Như Thuật, Quốc Vượng… from the SLNA youth academy, Lâm Tấn was once considered one of the rare talents and was highly anticipated by the coaches of the Nghệ An youth teams. Although recurring injuries robbed him of opportunities in top-level football, for Lâm Tấn, it remains a passion he will always cherish…

Lam Tan (number 3) plays amateur football in Vinh City.

Coach Nguyen Van Thinh, who coached Lam Tan since he was a child, once commented: "Tan is an extremely perfect full-back, with excellent physique, skillful technique, and speed, making him good in both attack and defense. Having Lam Tan playing on the left flank gives us complete peace of mind."

In fact, from 1996 to 2000, Lam Tan, along with his peers such as Van Quyen, Nhu Thuat, Quoc Vuong, Hai Nam, Quang Tuan, etc., brought a series of titles to Nghe An football in youth tournaments. Particularly at the 2000 AFC U16 Championship in Da Nang, Lam Tan was one of the most outstanding players, alongside Van Quyen and Nhu Thuat. In 2001, at only 17 years old, Lam Tan was promoted to the first team of SLNA. By 2002, he had become a very good wing-back for SLNA whenever he was given a chance to play, replacing his senior teammate Van Sy Son. That year, Lam Tan was called up by coach Alfred Rield to the U23 national team to compete in the Sea Games.

In the 2003 V.League season, playing for SLNA under the guidance of the club's chairman and head coach Nguyen Hong Thanh, Lam Tan played exceptionally well, contributing to the team consistently topping the league table in the first half of the season and at one point leading the second-placed team by as much as 6 points. Not only did he defend the left flank very well, but Lam Tan also frequently joined the attack, providing assists for the forwards, and scoring many spectacular long-range goals.

However, in a match in the second half of the 2003 season, he suffered a serious injury and had to limp off the field. Doctors later determined that Lam Tan had a ligament sprain and he had to be sidelined for more than a month. During that month, along with Lam Tan's bad luck, SLNA suffered consecutive defeats and lost their top spot in the league. Before his injury had fully recovered, Lam Tan impatiently asked the coaching staff to let him play, resulting in him having to leave the field on a stretcher and being out for the rest of the season. That season, SLNA only managed to finish in 5th place overall.

Lam Tan's injury was long-lasting, but at that time, neither the teams nor the players seemed aware of the importance of treating injuries, especially ligament sprains, completely. Or, to put it more accurately, sports medical care was not yet taken seriously, and players' incomes were low, so advice and treatment for injuries were inadequate and not thorough, especially the possibility of going abroad for treatment. Furthermore, SLNA was in a severe crisis at that time, so the treatment of Lam Tan's ligament injury was mainly handled by his family using folk remedies such as applying betel leaves and heated green tea.

The loyal fans who followed SLNA to the stadium every day witnessed Lam Tan's persistent training alone outside the pit lane. Lam Tan's perseverance and that of his family helped him return to the pitch. In the 2007 season, Lam Tan played quite impressively for SLNA, but only for a short time. After a strong collision with an opposing player, he had to leave the field in pain again, and this time, his ligaments were almost completely torn.

It was thought that Lam Tan would retire permanently after that incident, but for three years he persistently treated himself and maintained his fitness by playing amateur football. In the 2010 season, coach Huu Thang called him back to the SLNA team. However, bad luck still followed him; in one of the rare occasions he got to play, he suffered another injury, and the name Lam Tan disappeared from top-level football from then on.

For the past three years, even die-hard SLNA fans have forgotten about Lam Tan, a full-back who was once highly anticipated, because the "yellow jersey" team has replaced him with other young players like Van Hoan, Dinh Dong... Many people, unaware of the full story, even spread rumors that Lam Tan was delinquent and addicted to drugs, which led to his dismissal by SLNA.

For the past two years or so, Lam Tan has felt insecure about his teammates' successes and saddened by his own misfortune, so he rarely interacts with outsiders, especially strangers, and always avoids journalists. Only his passion for football remains intact. Currently, he plays for an amateur football team in Vinh City, and he also organizes a children's football class in Hung Dung ward (Vinh City) and directly coaches this ward-level youth team.

Hoang Hao