Mr. Park Hang-seo and his calculated choice

As the last tournament, coach Park Hang-seo leads the national team, of course his goal is the Championship Cup. But Mr. Park still creates opportunities for young players to join the national team, it is truly admirable to see this dedicated and caring coach.

Backbone of the team

List of 31 players of Vietnam national team. Photo: SP5

Mr. Park's decision to call up 7 players from the defending champion Hanoi and build a style of play on this framework is highly appreciated. Together with Quang Hai, a player from Hanoi FC, the national team will proactively hold the ball, attack with short, mid-range passes combined with breakthroughs in the 16.5m area. There will be 4-5 players from Hanoi FC in the starting lineup at the AFF Cup 2022 such as Van Quyet, Quang Hai, Hung Dung, Van Hau. At the AFF Cup 2022, Vietnam is in Group B with Singapore, Myanmar, Malaysia and Laos, all of which are considered underdogs, so Mr. Park's style of play is to proactively attack.

Coach Park called Nguyen Van Quyet (Hanoi), Pham Tuan Hai (Hanoi), Ha Duc Chinh (Binh Dinh), Pham Dinh Duy (Da Nang), Nguyen Tien Linh (Binh Duong) and "ignored" Cong Phuong. Playing 16 matches and scoring 5 goals in V.League 2022 did not help the Nghe star get a ticket to the national team when Tuan Hai just had a very good tournament in the capital team's shirt. Coach Park gave the opportunity to get acquainted with the national team atmosphere to young star Pham Dinh Duy (Da Nang).

Having played 47 matches for the national team, Xuan Truong will no longer have the opportunity to participate in the AFF Cup 2022 due to a recent minor injury, leading to a decline in physical strength. He participated in 17 matches in the V.League but only played the full 90 minutes twice. Meanwhile, other options in the midfield of the team are all more energetic and are rated higher at the moment, such as Do Hung Dung, Nguyen Hoang Duc, Nguyen Hai Huy. In which, Hai Huy is the best domestic player of runner-up Hai Phong with an effective direct attack.

Pham Xuan Manh is an irreplaceable player at Song Lam Nghe An in the central midfielder position with 23 appearances, scoring 3 goals. However, when he had to "carry the team" and sometimes made mistakes in decisive passes for the opponent to counterattack, Xuan Manh did not catch the eye of the strict coach. This is the name that leaves the most regret in the professional world when he was not able to play in his best position at Song Lam Nghe An, so he lost the opportunity to be called up to the national team.

7 players of the defending champion Hanoi are on the national team. Photo: HNFC

Goalkeeper Nguyen Van Toan (Hai Phong) is a surprising name when he did not play in V.League 2022 but was still called up to the national team. But looking at the list with up to 4 names and names like Khuat Van Khang, Phan Tuan Tai, Nguyen Thanh Nhan, Luong Duy Cuong, Pham Dinh Duy... belonging to "reserves", Mr. Park wants to give them a chance for their successor to know their names and faces.

Playing 4 matches in V.League 2022, 33-year-old player Nguyen Trong Hoang was named in the call-up list. This is the second time (after King Cup 2019) that Mr. Park has given special privileges to the player with the most seniority in the national team at this time, he can even take the starting position at AFF Cup 2022. Experience, endurance, diverse playing style... are the strengths that help Trong Hoang always be the number 1 choice of Mr. Park.

Team plan

According to the plan, the Vietnamese team will gather from November 23 in Hanoi. Some players from Hanoi FC, HAGL and Binh Dinh will gather later, due to being busy with the National Cup. After the friendly match with Borussia Dortmund, Coach Park and his team will go to Ba Ria Vung Tau for training from December 2 to December 10. After that, the team will return to Hanoi to play a friendly match with the Philippines, scheduled at Hang Day Stadium on December 14.

By December 17 or 18, before the team leaves for Vientiane to prepare for the opening match of Group B against host Laos, taking place on December 21, 2022, there will be 5-6 more names eliminated. Although Song Lam Nghe An only has 4 names called up to the team this time, according to our assessment, there is a 90% chance that 2 of them will be in the starting lineup./.