Looking back at V.League 2022 and early transfer windows

It is a new season continuing with new momentum of successful teams like Hanoi FC, Hai Phong or Binh Dinh, newly promoted teams like Khanh Hoa or People's Public Security, teams that continue to receive heavy investment to "upgrade" like Nam Dinh orLam River Nghe An… On the contrary, there is the sadness of “disbandment” for the Saigon FC team and its players; another name continues to leave the V-League like Quang Ninh last season; it is unclear about the former U19 stars at Hoang Anh Gia Lai after their contracts for the 2022 and 2023 seasons have expired, after a season of empty-handedness, even a career full of hope has now become full of disappointment.

Thai Ba Sang, the weakest point in SLNA's defense system. Photo: VFF

Those are the days when the Vietnamese team entered the final battle of the AFF Cup 2022 of the "wizard" Park Hang-seo. The stars who followed the Korean coach since Changzhou 2018, ASIAD 2019, AFF Cup 2018, AFF Cup 2020, SEA Games 30, 31... are being called to concentrate to achieve the throne from the hands of rival Thailand.

Hope was rekindled with the "veteran" Trong Hoang after a long time of injury treatment and just returned in the last few rounds at Song Lam Nghe An. Hope was rekindled with Van Quyet, Hai Huy, Ngoc Quang... after brilliant performances at Hanoi FC or Hai Phong last season. Hope was also rekindled with the U19 players known as Duy Cuong, Dinh Duy, Thanh Nhan, Van Khang... as they are the potential successors for a future rise of Vietnamese football, alongside Thanh Binh, Viet Anh... who are becoming more and more mature in the national team in recent fierce matches.

In addition, there is the absence of names that used to be "eating the national team's rice" such as Cong Phuong, Xuan Truong... due to both injury and performance reasons. This is not only a personal, temporary matter of a potential player, who was highly appreciated and praised by the media, but also the matter of a generation, a generation of players who were trained systematically, fundamentally, played and contributed but played in a team that lacked ambition, lacked goals, and had too much affection. The result is that almost all of that generation of excellent players have titles in the national team but are exhausted at their clubs, when they realize it, it is the end of their career (at the age of 28, 29) and now is the time for them to reflect and make a decisive decision for the remaining years.

Foreign player Olaha is gradually regaining his football playing form, promising to bring positive things to SLNA. Photo: Duc Anh

At the grassroots level, the U21 national qualifying round and finals are taking place. If they achieve positive results, many players will advance straight to the U23 next season (like what Van Duc and Xuan Manh in Song Lam Nghe An did in 2018), and will be considered for the first team to play officially or on loan in the V-League in the 2023 season, marking the professional career of each person. But remember, achievements in grassroots football are just the foundation, the beginning. What is important are achievements when playing professionally, playing in the V-League, and in national teams. That is a path that not everyone can go all the way, and those with prestige and status will find it even more difficult.

Currently, teams are also quietly training and selecting players, including overseas Vietnamese and foreign players. After staying in the league, Nam Dinh was "pumped with money" to make flashy purchases in the "early markets". The interesting thing is that while Song Lam Nghe An had to "call" key players like Van Dung and Quoc Trung to improve their level, now there is a "reverse wave" when Song Lam players will "flood" Thien Truong Stadium with Manh Hung, Van Tu, Khac Ngoc, Nguyen Manh and I heard Van Khanh? Last season, talents from all over flocked to the martial arts team after Quang Ninh disbanded, this season, a series of Saigon FC players will also spread out everywhere and whoever meets the "early market" will be delicious, but those who "go to the noon market, afternoon market" will only be spoiled, wasted...

That is to say, Vietnamese football is in the middle of a rotation in the direction of "water returning to low places", then there will be a very strong team with a series of stars as the core of the national team, there will be many teams that are only able to "feed" a few stars as the core, the locomotive, as the eternal rule of domestic and international football./.