SLNA: Will the 'single-barreled gun' run out of steam?

(Baonghean.vn) - With theOlaha Michael kicked low, it seems SLNA is strolling in V-League 2017 with a “single-barreled gun” even at home. The burden of scoring goals is on Henry Shackiel and that is starting to show its shortcomings.

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It cannot be said that B.Binh Duong is stronger than SHB.Da Nang, and it cannot be said that SLNA played badly when facing coach Tran Binh Su and his team. They did well in all aspects, except scoring and almost had to pay the price if it weren't for the header from reserve player Tuan Tai.

In theory, SLNA's attack line consists of two foreign players, Henry Shackiel and Olaha Michael, but recently Olaha has often been asked to retreat deep to participate in defense, so SLNA's tactical formation has transformed into 4-3-2-1. Suddenly, Henry Shackiel became the only one up front, and in the match against B.Binh Duong, center-back Michal Nguyen had no difficulty locking down this sole explosive device.

Playing as a striker, Olaha is often asked to drop back to join the defense. Photo: Duc Anh

According to our statistics, after 8 matches, SLNA players have fired 119 shots, scoring 13 goals, meaning it takes 9.1 shots to score 1 goal. This is a pretty bad rate, consuming a lot of effort and physical strength to score a goal, causing them to run out of steam in many matches.

Begrudge

Certainly, when deciding to sign the contract, SLNA's coaching board expected Olaha Michael to be a goal-scorer, not a free-roamer. When Olaha Michael does not have a good feel for the ball, pushing him to join the defense is a quick fix rather than a long-term solution. The Nigerian foreign player has good physical strength and is willing to compete, but his ability to create is poor, so the clear opportunities for the forward line are not high.

In fact, SLNA's coaching board also knew that and allowed Khac Ngoc to advance. In fact, he also scored a beautiful goal in the match against SHB.Da Nang, but basically, SLNA's attacking triangle only had Phi Son - The Cuong - Henry Shackiel. When attacked, sometimes Phi Son or The Cuong had to retreat, the already thin attack line was even more lacking in people to put pressure on the opponent's goal.

It seemed that Olaha Michael's free-kick solution would improve the ability to defend from a distance, but the fact that the "veteran" Tan Tai was still comfortable watching before crossing the ball for Dugary to score showed that concentrating too many people in the midfield area does not mean losing. The fact that there were 3 central midfielders but no one followed Tan Tai clearly showed that.

Red Rooster

Meanwhile, when Tuan Tai entered the field, Phi Son was pushed up high on the left wing, constantly harassing this wing, Henry Shackiel had more opportunities. When Tuan Tai was arranged to play quite high on the right wing, SLNA played with a 4-3-3 formation, the ability to approach Tan Truong's goal increased significantly. The fact that just a few minutes after entering the field, playing with 3 attacking positions, Tuan Tai scored a goal showed that SLNA's coaching board had made a bold but reasonable decision.

Tuan Tai skillfully dribbled past the defenders of B. Binh Duong. Photo: Duc Anh

It must be affirmed that Tuan Tai's ability to score goals is much better than Olaha Michael's even though this player is currently sitting on the bench. Therefore, although he is a starter in U23 VN, this is only the 7th goal of the striker born in 1995 in V.League for SLNA. However, statistics show that whenever he scores, Tuan Tai "the youngster" brings points to the Nghe team. Not to mention, next season "the youngster" will still be attached to Vinh Stadium, but whether Olaha Michael can survive at Vinh Stadium or not is an open question, so why hesitate?

Should we patiently wait forever and ever for Olaha Michael to score, then say goodbye...?

We know that the decision to use and arrange players is the right of the coaching board, but if we keep hunting with a "single-barreled gun" right at home, SLNA will face many disadvantages. Delaying the signing of contracts with foreign players is wrong, but locking up young players to use foreign players to prove that we are right, sometimes it is even more wrong.

N@T