Is the Vietnamese team being over-praised?

(Baonghean.vn) - After defeating Malaysia and officially entering the semi-finals of the AFF Cup 2016, the Vietnam team has received too much praise. The game has begun, they deserve it. But at this time, when the real opponents of the Vietnam team have not yet been revealed, it is not the time to be allowed to live in the euphoria of victory...

Winning two victories over Myanmar and Malaysia, even the most optimistic people feel that Vietnam has reached the semi-finals quite easily. That said, it does not mean that we are denying the efforts, sweat and blood of the boys in red.

Because realistically speaking, the playing style that coach Nguyen Huu Thang and his team have shown is relatively dignified and progressive with each match. In which, the mark of the Nghe An coach and his trump cards such as Xuan Truong, Cong Vinh... is very strong.

However, looking back, the defeated opponents of the Vietnam team in the group stage, Myanmar and Malaysia, were not worthy enough to become obstacles.

If unfortunately midfielder Xuan Truong is absent, the Vietnam team will certainly have problems in organizing attacks.

The Myanmar team at the AFF Cup 2016 is a cross between the U20 team at the U20 World Cup in New Zealand and the U23 team at the SEA Games in Singapore last year, with an average age of only 22.5. With such a young squad, Myanmar has clearly shown its weakness of lacking experience and battle prowess.

This is also the reason why Myanmar's performance in 2016 was quite poor with only 1 win in the last 7 matches.

If Myanmar failed to hold off the Vietnamese team because of the lack of necessary aggression, the strength and fighting spirit of the Malaysian team this year has also seriously declined due to internal problems.

With only 3 months left until the start of the 2016 AFF Cup, the four "evil spirits" of the national team, Aidil Zafuan, Safiq Rahim, Kunanlan Subramaniam and Amirul Zainal, have announced the end of their international careers for unknown reasons.

Even coach Ong Kim Swee could not explain these unfortunate absences. Not stopping there, the Ministry of Youth & Sports and the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) are seriously considering withdrawing from the AFF Cup when the tournament has not yet started.

Coach Nguyen Huu Thang does not allow the national team players to be complacent when the AFF Cup has not yet entered its most intense stage.

Speaking of the Vietnam national team, under coach Nguyen Huu Thang, there have not been any negative signs related to internal affairs. The Nghe An coach is capable enough to maintain a unified and united team, but there are risks.

Besides, not only experts but also fans can easily see the big difference between the main players and the reserve players in the national team. The playing style that the Vietnam team shows is quite dependent on "card dealers" like Xuan Truong.

Without Tuan Anh, the team's attacking power will certainly be significantly reduced if unfortunately the midfielder currently playing in the K.League is not at his best. The semi-finals are in sight, the opportunity for Cong Phuong to find himself is not much left and the task of coach Nguyen Huu Thang is not only to help this player regain his form. Therefore, there is no other way, the attack line depends on the remaining names such as Cong Vinh, Van Quyet or Van Toan.

Since taking over the national team, coach Nguyen Huu Thang expressed his desire to have more assistants to support him. However, this plan was ruined when coaches like Lu Dinh Tuan could not contribute.

If there is a good advisor to help the head coach read the situation on the field, surely the coaching staff of the Vietnam National Team will know the enemy and come up with timely strategies. Of course, Coach Huu Thang is confident enough to do this.

After 2 matches, although the Vietnam team has known how to impose its style of play, it was against opponents who were not formidable. Striker Cong Vinh is absolutely right when he said that winning is more important than playing style. Creating many opportunities, but not knowing how to take advantage of them to score goals, playing style is completely meaningless.

The spirit of coach Nguyen Huu Thang and his team is commendable, but after only facing opponents in the Knock-out round like Thailand, even the Philippines, it is not too late to give the teams words of joy!

Quynh Trang