SLNA risks having no players left at the 2019 King's Cup.
(Baonghean.vn) - Coach Park Hang-seo is highly determined to lead the team in the King's Cup, scheduled for June. However, he will face a major personnel dilemma as key players are experiencing various misfortunes. Among them, several players from the SLNA youth academy are likely to be absent.
The King's Cup is an annual friendly tournament organized by the Football Association of Thailand from June 5th to 8th. Although it is only a friendly tournament, the results at the King's Cup will be used as a basis for seeding in the second round of the 2022 World Cup qualifiers.
Therefore, Park Hang-seo undoubtedly wants his team to have the best possible squad in order to achieve good results and gain an advantage in their ambition to qualify for the 2022 World Cup.
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| The fact that key players are struggling will cause Coach Park a headache. Photo: VTC |
Perhaps the most worrying case is that of Trong Hoang. The left-back of the Vietnamese national team has not played a single official match since the 2019 Asian Cup. When he transferred to Viettel, the V.League 2019 organizers had already finalized the first-half squad list, so Hoang had to wait until the second half to be included in the squad of the "successor" team of The Cong as a supplementary player.
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| Having not played a single match since the Asian Cup, Trong Hoang is unlikely to be called up by coach Park Hang-seo. Photo: Sport |
His compatriot Que Ngoc Hai, who also plays for Viettel, is facing similar difficulties. The central defender from Dien Chau has significantly declined since leaving Vinh Stadium. Ngoc Hai has only played two matches in the V.League this year. However, he has been disappointing in both games.
In the opening match against Da Nang, after committing two fouls and receiving yellow cards, Que Ngoc Hai had to leave the field, causing his team to lose 1-3. Then, in round 3 of the V.League, an unnecessary tackle on Van Kien (Hanoi FC) resulted in Que Ngoc Hai receiving a four-match suspension from the organizers.
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| With poor form and a suspension, will Coach Park take a risk with Que Ngoc Hai?Photo: Sport |
The other player is attacking star Phan Van Duc. After the match against Quang Nam in the first round of V.League 2019, Phan Van Duc unexpectedly suffered an injury and is currently still working on his recovery at the PVF youth training center.
It is estimated that Phan Văn Đức needs another 3-4 weeks to recover from his injury. After returning to play, it will be difficult for the player from Yên Thành to regain his best form. Therefore, the decision of whether or not to use Phan Văn Đức at the King's Cup will certainly be carefully considered by the Vietnam national team's coaching staff.
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| Phan Văn Đức probably has a good chance, but his fairly serious injury would be a risk if Coach Park were to use him.Photo: Zing.vn |
Frankly speaking, Park Hang-seo still desperately needs the leadership qualities of Que Ngoc Hai, the tireless Trong Hoang, and Phan Van Duc – a striker who always knows how to explode at the right moment. However, it's very likely that Park won't dare to take the risk at all costs because the current form of all three is not good.
It is highly likely that the three players who performed exceptionally well in the recent U23 Asian Cup qualifiers – Tan Sinh, Tan Tai, and Hoang Duc – will fill the void left by the three key players who came through the SLNA academy.
