Will SLNA change tactics?

Poor playing style, can be successful in youth tournaments when the tactical issue is still in the completion stage but this is making SLNA struggle in V.League. Weak teams do not have difficulty getting points when meeting SLNA, even at Vinh Stadium.

Finding the cause

The first thing is whySLNACurrently, there is no one with enough caliber to sit in the position of Technical Director in the true sense. Previously, former head coach Nguyen Duc Thang sat in this hot seat but did not leave a tactical mark.

Olaha's presence will give SLNA more attacking options. Photo: Duc Anh

The fact that the coaches at SLNA Club do not have much experience and personal achievements makes anyone who sits in the head coach's chair try to follow the path of their predecessors rather than create their own personal mark. Not to mention, SLNA has a tradition of not using outsiders, making them only have the option of "closing the door to talk to each other", regardless of the quality of the players, regardless of how the opponent plays.

Currently, V.League clubs have had many changes in training and match preparation. Up to now, HAGL, Hanoi and many V.League clubs have had medical, nutrition, and fitness experts and recently they have invited foreign experts to be in charge of match analysis. Meanwhile, SLNA's match analysis and preparation work over the past decade has been quite sketchy. This sketchiness has made SLNA's playing style poor in tactics.

Post-match analysis has also proven ineffective. For a long time, SLNA's only way was to replace one coach with another when the results were poor, then replace another coach with a better one, a vicious cycle that lasted for a long time before a new sponsor appeared.

Choose rice, pick fish sauce

Phan Van Duc and his teammates performed many difficult exercises given by the coaching staff. Photo: Duc Anh

When choosing to play with the 4-4-2 tactic, the prerequisite is to have a center forward who should have a good physique, tall but still ensure agility to be a wall, playing the role of receiving crosses from the side like Huynh Duc, Anh Duc. Next to that is an attacking midfielder who can be smaller but skillful, agile (like Van Sy Hung in the past) and ready to create breakthroughs. The two chosen wingers need to prioritize speed and the ability to cross the ball accurately.

These are two extremely important conditions in this playing diagram. If all the conditions are not met, the coach will be forced to switch to another style of play. In the midfield, there are two central midfielders: one midfielder is responsible for defending or recovering the ball, and the other midfielder is responsible for regulating the play, keeping the rhythm and helping the team possess the ball more.

In fact, currently, SLNA, whether playing with a 4-4-2 formation or a variation of 4-5-1, the Nghe An team only has Van Duc in the left position and Bui Dinh Chau temporarily plays a role in recovering the ball. Above, for a long time, whenever SLNA foreign players have the ball, the opposing coaches are much more confident because they will inevitably lose the ball or have harmless passes because of excess strength, lack of calculation, and relieve the attacking pressure for the opponent.

It is known that any tactical scheme needs quality players, but the basic characteristics of SLNA's current playing style must have an excellent striker and intelligent midfielders with deadly passes, and wingers with high accuracy.

Currently, Coach Huy Hoang is given full authority to decide on professional matters, much more than his seniors. But for the first time in charge, facing an extremely difficult task, Huy Hoang and the SLNA coaching staff must calculate more carefully and thoroughly. One thing is for sure, if they still play with the old style of play and old tactical thinking, SLNA will not make their opponents in the V.League 2021 relegation race worry because they have solved it simply./.