Tips for HAGL to win

(Baonghean) - Witnessing HAGL's consecutive defeats, Mr. Truong Quang Vinh - the first coach who guided Cong Phuong into football - believes that: "HAGL only needs to pull their formation back, control the ball well at home and apply a counter-attacking strategy to be effective…".

Mr. Truong Quang Vinh analyzed: HAGL's current playing style is one of "not knowing themselves or their opponents." It seems that Cong Phuong and the other HAGL players have only learned how to attack, not how to defend. Coach Graechen applies the same tactic to every opponent, focusing only on attacking with quick passes and direct attacks through the center. This style might be effective against an opponent who plays an open, attacking game, but when the opponent plays a defensive, compact formation in front of the 16.5-meter box, the HAGL players are like "running headfirst into a wall."

Coach Truong Quang Vinh.

Graechen's success with the Vietnam U19 team in international tournaments stems from the fact that most opponents haven't figured out their tactics, and the youth teams also employ a back-and-forth style of play, attacking relentlessly regardless of the outcome, creating ample space for players like Cong Phuong, Tuan Anh, Xuan Truong, Van Toan, and their teammates to showcase their skills. However, in a league like the V.League, it's different. Vietnamese teams understand HAGL's playing style very well. They simply use a large number of players to block the midfield, denying Cong Phuong and his teammates any space to demonstrate their technique, making scoring completely impossible. Meanwhile, due to their focus on attacking, Graechen's players frequently push forward, leaving too much space in their own half. Therefore, when the opponent has possession, a single accurate long pass to the attacking midfielder and forward is enough for a combination and a collision to score against HAGL.

“I think HAGL should learn the modern Italian defensive football philosophy. To win against an opponent, before thinking about scoring, you should protect your own goal well. Some people say that the strength of HAGL's young players is attacking, and defense is not their forte, so Coach Graechen is forced to use attack as defense to be effective. I think that's not right. The real strength of Cong Phuong and this generation of HAGL players is their technique, their ability to coordinate well, and their good ball control. If Coach Graechen has the team play deeper in their own half, with midfielders often playing deeper, it will create a protective wall in front of the goal. The ball control of his players will still be utilized, thus reducing the opponent's opportunities to have the ball in a comfortable position to shoot. When HAGL doesn't constantly push forward to put pressure on the opponent's half like in recent matches, but instead plays a coordinated game, mainly keeping possession in the midfield area.” Waiting for opportunities forces the opponent to push their formation forward to win the ball, which creates space for Cong Phuong, Tuan Anh, Xuan Truong, Van Toan, and Hoang Thien to showcase their strengths with triangular passing combinations, quickly approaching the goal to score.

In short, coach Graechen and the HAGL players shouldn't play in an "over-the-top" style, but instead put themselves in an "underdog" position, adopting a defensive counter-attacking strategy. I believe HAGL would then have a much better chance of winning against even the strongest opponents in the current V.League. Of course, if HAGL could add a center-back with good aerial ball skills and a striker with speed and sharpness in scoring goals, the effectiveness would be even higher.

Hoang Hao(take note)