Thailand faces difficulties before Vietnam match in World Cup qualifiers; Neymar criticized for lacking leadership qualities

Thailand has little time to prepare.

The matches of round 26 of Thai League 1 will end on the afternoon of August 25. The following day, the players summoned by Akira Nishino will gather to prepare for the match against Vietnam in the second qualifying round of the 2022 World Cup in Asia. Thus, Thailand will only have about 10 days of training. This makes it difficult for new coach Nishino to convey his ideas and assemble the squad according to his philosophy.

"The national championship schedule is very tight. It is difficult to convince clubs to release players early to join the team," said Kornvirakun Nanthakul, secretary general of the Football Association of Thailand. "I know that for the opening match, Vietnam has more preparation time than Thailand, which is 10 days. Hopefully, clubs can create conditions for the new coach."

In the 2022 World Cup qualifiers, Thailand is in the same group as UAE, Vietnam, Malaysia and Indonesia. In the opening match, the "War Elephants" will face Park Hang-seo's team, who just beat them 1-0 at the King's Cup in early June 2019.

Thailand and Vietnam are considered two teams directly competing for a place in the next round in Group G, along with the seeded team UAE. The winner of the match between the two teams on September 5 will have many advantages in calculating for a favorable position in the qualifying round.

After the match with Vietnam, Thailand will play the second match in Indonesia on September 10. Nishino and his team will rest in the third match. The biggest challenge for Thailand will come in the fourth match, on October 15, when they host the UAE at home.

Neymar criticized for lacking leadership qualities

"Neymar is an undeniable talent, but he lacks the qualities to be a leader on the pitch," Hilton, a 41-year-old Brazilian defender for Montpellier, told L'Équipe (France). "Many Brazilians are happy that Neymar is not participating in the Copa America."

Brazil won the championship without Neymar.

Neymar had to say goodbye to the Copa America in early June, when he suffered an ankle injury. In the tournament that followed, Brazil won the title with an unbeaten record, scoring 13 goals and conceding just once in six matches.

On one hand, he criticized Neymar, but on the other hand, Hilton expressed regret if his compatriot star left PSG to return to Barca: "He is still one of the best players in Ligue 1. Not everyone can stop Neymar on the field. It would be sad and regrettable if he left."

Tottenham players express desire to visit Vietnam

Tottenham Hotspur are entering the International Champions Cup (ICC) campaign taking place in Singapore. This is a friendly tournament that brings together many big teams such as Man Utd, Juventus, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich.

Speaking to Fox Sports Asia ahead of the match against Juventus, Vertonghen said: "There are many countries in Asia that I want to visit. However, this place is quite far away for me to go during my vacations while I am still playing professionally."

"However, after retiring, I will definitely go to Asia and visit many different countries like Vietnam, Malaysia or maybe Singapore," the Belgian midfielder added.

Tottenham lost to Liverpool in the 2018/19 Champions League final. Photo: Getty Images.

The former Ajax player joined Tottenham Hotspur in 2012 for a fee of €12.5 million. To date, Vertonghen has played a total of 286 matches and is a mainstay in the London team's defence.

Last season, under coach Mauricio Pochettino, he and his teammates reached the Champions League final but lost 0-2 to Liverpool. In the Premier League, Tottenham finished in 4th place with 71 points after 38 rounds.

The achievements in Europe's most prestigious arena last season have created great motivation for Tottenham to continue to develop, typically spending big in the summer transfer market after more than 500 days of absence. In addition, ICC 2019 is also the perfect stepping stone for "The Rooster" to prepare for the new season.