How will Mr. Park Hang-seo "neutralize" the Malaysian coach's move?
(Baonghean.vn) - At My Dinh Stadium, Mr. Park deliberately "weakened himself" with a strange formation to entice coach Tan Cheng Hoe to excitedly direct the Malaysian players to attack and lost 0-2. This time at home at Bukit Jalil Stadium, what move will Mr. Tan use to counter the "Park-ball" style of play of the Vietnamese team?
Without 3 points at home in Bukit Jalil, the chance of winning the Gold Cup for coach Tan Cheng Hoe and his players will be significantly narrowed. Therefore, although both Park Hang-seo and Tan Cheng Hoe are creating confusion, Malaysia's playing style must still be attacking to score goals. The problem is how to attack?
Counter-strategy
Mr. Tan prefers to attack, likes to control the ball with dangerous attacks on the touchline. Malaysian players rarely sit back and wait for the opponent to attack, but they actively control the ball with triangular movements and short passes.
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| Malaysia will play with a 4-4-2 formation, organizing an early siege, even when the ball is being deployed by the opponent in the defense. Photo: Internet |
Since the beginning of the tournament, Malaysia has always been superior in terms of ball possession. Malaysia organized early attacks, even when the ball was being deployed by the opponent in the defense. Only in the second leg of the semi-final against Thailand, did they keep the ball less than their opponent, when in the last 15 minutes they retreated to protect the favorable 2-2 score.
Malaysia is very strong in attacking from the flanks thanks to the presence of two fast and strong wingers, Safawi and Sumareh, especially the naturalized player Sumareh (number 13, playing on the right wing). In addition, they also have good attacking full-backs, always ready to rush forward to make overlapping plays.
However, it is unclear why the Malaysian midfielders did not apply the Nordic style of playing, focusing on the ball in the air for the strikers to compete with the opposing central defenders to wear down their stamina. There were not many crosses into the space between the goalkeeper and the opponent's defense, so despite having the most possession of the ball among the four semi-finalists, Malaysia only scored 9 goals. Of course, apart from Talaha and Zaquan Adha, many Malaysian players have repeatedly "turned goals into opportunities" due to a lack of necessary precision.
Go into the tiger's den
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| Expected lineup of Vietnam. |
Certainly, Mr. Park Hang-seo knows that the opponent will play with a 4-4-2 formation, but the midfield pair Akram Mahinan - Syamer Kutty Abba is not the trigger. "Old general" Talaha is playing back to "deal the cards", distributing the ball to the wings. Most likely, the physically strong midfielder Duc Huy will be assigned to "kill" this number 9 from the midfield area.
When Mr. Tan Cheng Hoe advocated pressing, putting pressure as soon as the opponent had the ball, it meant that Malaysian players had to frequently leave their positions. Therefore, the Malaysian team did not maintain distance between lines and positions. The counter-attack after Malaysia's failed crosses was certainly exploited by the Vietnamese team when counter-attacking. Van Duc and Trong Hoang were players with speed for Mr. Park to execute this attack.
Because of their preference for possession and pressing, Malaysia often cannot create a tight defensive system when they do not have the ball. The looseness in the system and the lack of awareness of individuals are the reasons for Malaysia's first goal in the second leg of the semi-final against Thailand. This is the "gap" for Cong Phuong, Van Quyet, Quang Hai to attack solo when we do not have many players participating in the attack.
The opponents in the two finals, Malaysia, have made significant changes compared to the group stage, and coach Park Hang-Seo and his team will certainly face many difficulties. On the field, both sides will have to adjust their tactics, and what the Vietnamese players need to do is avoid being caught up in their opponents' fiery play.
When considering scoring goals through situations and accepting to concede the game to the home team, taking advantage of opportunities is considered a prerequisite for scoring. Malaysia is not a team with a really tight defense but there are not many opportunities, how to score goals is what Mr. Park Hang-Seo has to worry about. If you can do that, you will surely win!
