After coach Park Hang-seo, who has a chance?
(Baonghean.vn) - For a long time, whenever a foreign coach leads the Vietnamese national team, when competing internationally, they always have rare confidence against any opponent. From Mr. Weigang to Riedl, Calistor or Park Hang-seo today, every time the Vietnamese national team competes, it is an opportunity to force opponents in the region to be wary. However, in the continental arena, so far, it is clear that the two Korean coaches, Mr. Park Hang-seo and Mr. Gong Oh-kyun, are leaving the strongest impression.
Mr. Park Hang-seo led U23 Vietnam to win the runner-up position of the 2018 U23 Asian Cup, along with the team.Vietnam teamReaching the quarter-finals of the 2019 ASIAD and the third qualifying round of the 2022 World Cup are the greatest achievements that Vietnamese football has achieved in the international arena. Mr. Gong Oh-kyun has just "taken charge" of U23 Vietnam in the most recent tournament, the U23 Asia - 2022. It is worth mentioning that after the "shadow" of Mr. Park Hang-seo when he led U23 Vietnam to win the SEA Games Gold Medal twice in a row, Mr. Gong Oh-kyun still boldly made a revolution in terms of force and playing style that seemed to have been shaped and was the best built by his predecessor, to bring U23 Vietnam to the quarter-finals of the continental tournament.
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Coach Park Hang-seo tries to create a comfortable atmosphere in the Vietnam National Team before the match against the Singapore National Team. Photo courtesy of Hai Hoang |
Regarding the force, Mr. Gong Oh-kyun introduced a series of young factors, not depending on whether they participated and won the SEA Games gold medal or not. Those are Van Khang, Van Truong, Tien Long, Tuan Tai... who are then trusted by Mr. Park Hang-seo himself in the Vietnam National Team. It was surprising when U23 Vietnam under Mr. Gong Oh-kyun practiced a fierce, varied, and extremely confident attacking style of play, even though they were completely new and were fighting for the first time in the continental arena. Highly promoting traditional qualities, creating surprises by launching many new points in the playing style, determined not to let the opponent predict... are Mr. Gong Oh-kyun's strengths. That is even what his predecessor Park Hang-seo is confused about, although the direction has always been clear in recent times.
Many people must remember how miserable the Vietnamese team was when they met the Indonesian or Thai teams at the AFF Cup 2020 and the similar deadlock that U23 Vietnam had when they met U23 Philippines at the recent SEA Games 31. That was when the opponent played deep, making the advantage of Coach Park Hang-seo and his team become disadvantageous, but there was nothing else they could do to turn the situation around. The story was clearer in the 2022 World Cup qualifiers when the Vietnamese team met a more classy opponent but Coach Park Hang-seo still only used a familiar squad, losing repeatedly made them frustrated and bored with the game. Until the coach boldly introduced new elements, there was a resounding 3-1 victory against neighbor China or a 1-1 draw in Japan.
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Young midfielder Khuat Van Khang received special attention from coach Park Hang-seo. Photo courtesy of Hai Hoang |
Maybe he called Van Quyet recently, but Huu Tuan, Van Vu, Van Thuan, Xuan Manh... were not looked at, even though they are playing very well in the V-League. But if you look at the first half of the recent match against the Indian team, even though Van Quyet scored 2 goals in 2 matches, he is still only sure to be on the reserve team in the upcoming AFF Cup? It seems that an old, familiar squad has long been the last trust of Mr. Park Hang-seo. Someone predicted that if Quang Hai does not return to the AFF Cup, Van Quyet will replace this important position, but there is no guarantee that will happen. Remember, Tuan Anh has always been called up and trusted even though he only played 1 half of the match and then was replaced. Many Hoang Anh Gia Lai players have almost "hit the ceiling" of form but are still called up to the national team and... just left there. Is it different that with the AFF Cup 2022 as the "final battle", Mr. Park Hang-seo will do everything possible, like what he did in the victory over China, to take back the regional throne for the Vietnam Team from the hands of the Thais?
That said, to see at this point, especially when Mr. Park Hang-seo leaves Vietnamese football, Mr. Gong Oh-kyun is the one who has the most reason to consider when he has shown himself to be more decisive, innovative, daring to play, and daring to take on more responsibility than his successful senior? Obviously, at this time, when the successful cycle of Vietnamese football seems to be about to end, if he is slow, confused and indecisive like Mr. Park Hang-seo, the risk of being caught up and surpassed, not only by Thailand but also by Indonesia or the Philippines is right behind. Not to mention the "World Cup dream" is getting bigger and closer, but everything is following the "old story", old success, old people... then maybe everything that is far away will continue to be further away, slipping out of our hands without us knowing? While we have a foreign teacher who is "good at everything" and has been through real combat, Mr. Gong Oh-kyun, who has been strangely silent after the U23 Asian Cup for a long time?
