The best goalkeepers from Nghe An province today.
(Baonghean.vn) - In the past, Nghe An province was the birthplace of top goalkeepers in Vietnamese football such as Nguyen The Anh, Duong Hong Son... And now, many goalkeepers from Nghe An are gradually making a name for themselves in the colors of clubs and the national team.
Tran Nguyen Manh (SLNA)
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| Goalkeeper Nguyen Manh is the leading player of SLNA. (Photo: Archival image) |
Despite not being called up to the national team for quite some time, goalkeeper Nguyen Manh is still highly regarded by experts. The SLNA captain has six years of experience playing in the V.League and was a top choice for coaches Toshiya Miura and Nguyen Huu Thang in the national team.
The player from Do Luong possesses excellent reflexes, the ability to catch high balls, initiate attacks, and especially save penalties. However, Nguyen Manh's only limitation is his relatively short height (1.77m). Nguyen Manh's regular presence in goal was a key factor in SLNA's victory in the National Cup last season.
Tong Duc An (Saigon)
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| It's a shame that goalkeeper Tong Duc An isn't included in the national team. (Photo: Internet) |
Goalkeeper Tong Duc An (born in 1991), originally from Quynh Luu, and Tran Nguyen Manh trained together at the SLNA youth academy in 2004 and 2005. However, due to his playing career, Tong Duc An was sent back to his family by the SLNA youth academy coaching staff in 2006.
At the end of 2010, Viettel transferred their First Division spot to T&T, and Tong Duc An and his teammates from the Viettel academy joined the team owned by Chairman Hien, competing in the First Division in 2011. In the 2016 season, the team earned a spot in the V.League and subsequently moved to Ho Chi Minh City under a new name: Saigon FC.
For the past two years, this 1.80m tall goalkeeper has been the number one goalkeeper for the Saigon team. Last season, he played in 23 out of 26 matches and made a significant contribution to Saigon FC's achievement of finishing in the Top 5 of the V.League 2017.
Pham Van Cuong (Quang Nam)
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| Pham Van Cuong (number 22) was called up to the national team by coach Park Hang Seo in 2017. Photo: Internet |
Having graduated from the Military Region 4 training academy and overcome many difficulties and challenges, goalkeeper Pham Van Cuong (1.86m) is currently the number one goalkeeper for Quang Nam Club, the team that just won the V.League 2017 championship.
Wearing the Quang Nam jersey, the goalkeeper, born in 1990 and originally from Hung Nguyen, played all 26/26 matches for Quang Nam with remarkable composure.
The Instat player statistics and analysis software ranked Van Cuong at number 4 out of 14 goalkeepers in the V.League. Thanks to this, Van Cuong was included in the national team's training camp list by coach Park Hang Seo last year.
Not long ago, he decided to commit to the Quang Nam team for another 3 years.
Phan Dinh Vu Hai (Hai Phong)
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| The goalkeeper from Ha Tinh province in the colors of Hai Phong Club. Photo: Provided by the interviewee. |
Goalkeeper Phan Đình Vũ Hải, born in 1994 in Nghi Xuân district, Hà Tĩnh province, had been known only as a reserve goalkeeper for Hải Phòng for many years. However, in 2017, when the team faced a goalkeeping crisis, Vũ Hải was given a chance and unexpectedly won the trust of coach Trương Việt Hoàng. His impressive performance in the match against Ho Chi Minh City FC in round 21 of the V.League, helping his team win 4-1, marked a very successful V.League debut for the goalkeeper.
Goalkeeper Vu Hai, standing at 1.83m tall, possesses the advantage of excellent goalkeeping and a tenacious, confident playing style. In the 2017 V.League season, he only managed to start 4 matches for Hai Phong, but all were convincing performances. If he maintains this form, it will be difficult for anyone to replace Vu Hai as Hai Phong's goalkeeper.
Nguyen Van Hoang (Saigon)
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| Goalkeeper Nguyen Van Hoang in the Vietnam U23 national team jersey. Photo: Provided by the interviewee. |
Discovered at the VSH academy, Van Hoang was constantly benched behind goalkeeper Tong Duc An at Saigon FC. However, in the 2016 season, Van Hoang made his debut in a 3-3 draw against Hai Phong, and subsequently started three more matches and came on as a substitute in one game.
By the 2017 season, the goalkeeper from Tan Ky didn't play regularly, but he delivered outstanding performances whenever coach Duc Thang gave him the opportunity.
With good reflexes, intelligent positioning, and convincing performances, the player born in 1995 (1.86m tall) caught the eye of coach Park Hang Seo and was included in the squad for the U23 Asian Championship finals.
It is highly likely that Van Hoang will surpass Bui Tien Dung and Dang Ngoc Tuan to become the starting goalkeeper at the continental tournament.