U22 Vietnam lacks flour, and it is difficult to wash it, so it is difficult to glue it.

Initially, many people thought the starting lineup ofU22 VietnamWhen facing weak opponents like U22 Laos or U22 Singapore, it is... the second formation, to save cards and troops for the decisive matches. But gradually, there is no high or low scheme, but the actual strength of the formation is just that, only that. The main formation that played against U22 Laos and the semi-final match against U22 Indonesia only changed Ngoc Thang's position, which shows that.

The opening match was not proactive, with many mistakes, then the next match was improved, more connected, of course, considered progress as the new coach said. But then the defense only rotated those positions, depending on the good or bad reality of each match to be trusted or not without a truly stable framework. Tien Long played defensively and played immaturely compared to expectations. Duy Cuong turned out to be not very trustworthy despite having a good physique and often playing as a starter in the V-League. The most "forgotten" player in the group stage, Ngoc Thang, turned out to play well in the less stressful match against U22 Thailand to continue to be trusted as a starter in the match against U22 Indonesia.

Dinh Xuan Tien made his mark when he put pressure on the opposing central defender, contributing to the equalizer 2-2 for U22 Vietnam. Photo: Hai Hoang

The midfield only relies on the mobility of Thai Son and the strength of Duc Phu, while Nhat Nam, although scoring 1 goal in the draw with U22 Thailand, cannot be said to be trustworthy in a tense match. Cong Den disappeared after injury, Van Khang played well but was still at the potential level. Van Truong disappeared after clumsy and hasty handling. Xuan Tien continued to be unreliable, being deployed in the wrong position, so he was pale. In the attack, Van Do did not have the strengths like when playing in the V-League and in the end, the whole team still had to rely on the talent of Van Tung as the key.

After failing to show themselves, the humiliating defeat when the opportunity in their hands was missed was extremely regrettable, making people remember the loud statements of some players before the tournament to the media. Such as "I will try to score in the matches", will "keep a clean sheet in the matches at the SEA Games", in the end, some were eliminated, some only did it once, the rest were... in disarray and were considered by their opponents as the root cause of the defeat in the semi-finals.

The French coach seems to want to use attack as the foundation for the team, good attack ensures victory without paying attention to the defense system. This is not new in the system of views of strategists, but the main thing is that U22 Vietnam does not attack well and the defense is also too mediocre, compared to the way his predecessor Park Hang-seo operates.

Mr. Troussier and the media are proving the strengths of each generation of players, that in the past there were many U23 players who had a place in the Vietnam National Team, but now there are very few (only Van Khang was on the bench, Dinh Duy was not called). That is a reality and what the U22 Indonesian stars, who are also their national team players, showed in the semi-final match allows us to see that clearly, to accept that.

Van Tung scored a double to help U22 Vietnam win against U22 Malaysia. Photo: Hai Hoang

But we cannot be satisfied with the fact that the defense and midfield of U22 Vietnam, no matter what style they play, need to change their personnel, by finding players who can demonstrate leadership ability in each line. Mr. Troussier used to lead the U19 Vietnam team before and is relying on them a lot. It is just a pity that currently there is no player who can fulfill the requirements. Van Do, Cong Den, Tien Long, Tuan Tai... all have to change, have to improve to be trusted in the upcoming continental competition. The U20 players who are trusted beyond their level such as Van Khang, Van Truong, Van Cuong, Thai Son, Minh Trong... will hopefully grow up over time, when they will be the mainstays in the upcoming SEA Games.

Besides the important matter of “having flour to make paste”, the method and way of “washing” of the new coach will be the focus of all attention, even leading to a replacement if U23 Vietnam or the Vietnam National Team does not play well after the time of Coach Park Hang-seo. There are also people who praise it, advising everyone to be patient and wait for the sweet fruit from the new coach and new philosophy. But there are also people who do not believe in any miracle when U22 Vietnam plays sloppily throughout the whole process, not just in one match.

The coaching staff did not adjust well in the final minutes when the team had more players and there was even 30 minutes of extra time afterwards, allowing the opponent to defeat them painfully, causing the already small confidence to drop to zero, even "negative" afterwards. The new coach's personnel selection may also have problems when he massively brought in U20 players, while ignoring many others who were performing well and had the desire to contribute.

Advanced methods and operations but the force does not respond will only lead to failure. Being good at adapting to reality, to "powder" is both a way of operating for reality, but also not slipping away from moving towards a more distant future is a high-level calculation, but is Mr. Troussier achieving that?

The problems of U22 Vietnam, both teachers and students, will of course be resolved in a certain period of time. The immediate problem right now is knowing how to stand up after a defeat to win the Bronze Medal match. Doing that is not only to salvage the achievement, but the main thing is to strengthen confidence again, as a basis for future steps and calculations./.

Bui Hoa