Coach Park will 'cut his coat according to his cloth'; Thai coach Sirisak said Cong Phuong is 'most dangerous'

According to the latest schedule agreed upon by VFF and Coach Park Hang-seo, the entire team will fly to Thailand on June 1. After that, the players and coaching staff of the Vietnam National Team will rest in Bangkok and travel 400km to Buriram on the morning of June 2.

"Cut your coat according to your cloth"

Obviously, the new travel plan will help coach Park Hang-seo's team quickly adapt to the weather conditions in Buriram. But even though this is the best preparation plan for the big match with the Thai team at 7:45 p.m. on June 5, the team only has less than 4 days to prepare. Compared to the teams participating in the King's Cup, the Vietnamese team has the shortest preparation time, if not rushed.

Xuan Truong will play the role of "insider" for coach Park. Photo: FAT

The time is too short, according to the tournament regulations only allowing a maximum of 23 players to be registered, so it is unlikely that Mr. Park will bring more than 25 players to Thailand. As the Thai press has commented, with such a limited time, it will be difficult for Coach Park Hang-seo to call up a Vietnamese team with new elements.

Even for the national teams of advanced football countries, such time is not enough to innovate the playing style or assemble the team with new faces. The host media commented that this gathering will basically only be the old faces that have been with Mr. Park since the U23 Asia, Asiad, AFF Cup and Asian Cup 2019.

This is clearly a surprise compared to initial calculations, and is even a bit harsh for many players who are playing much better in the V-League than their colleagues who have been Mr. Park's students for the past 2 years.

Among the four teams participating in the tournament, the Vietnam team ranked 98th, only behind Curacao ranked 82nd, above India ranked 101st and host Thailand ranked 114th on the FIFA rankings. However, with the host team's nature of winning or losing, and not having enough time, VFF and Coach Park will not be able to risk the match that Vietnamese fans have been waiting for a long time.

In fact, it would be a pity for some new faces who have played excellently in V.League such as Truong Tinh (S.Khanh Hoa) or Anh Tuan (SHB.Da Nang) but it is very difficult to assemble them into the national team in this context. When prioritizing "seniority of the team", there is no other way but to leave out some names that have made continuous efforts in the past time.

Rubik's game

“I think Cong Phuong is still the most dangerous player. Thailand will have to prepare carefully for every little detail in the upcoming match,” said Coach Sirisak. Photo: FAT

It is not difficult to guess that Coach Park will play a Rubik's cube game based on the old faces that he knows very well. Multi-talented players like Van Toan, Hoang, Van Thanh or Hong Duy will be strategic cards, creating a breakthrough in an unchanging situation. In fact, at the U23 Asia, Asiad, AFF Cup and Asian Cup 2019, Coach Park had matches where he changed the playing positions of Quang Hai, Van Duc, Trong Hoang 2, 3 times in a match. In some matches, Coach Park used 4 different tactical diagrams.

In this context, that will be repeated, even Thai football experts believe that with players who can both create and score goals like Van Toan and Quang Hai, Vietnam might have to play without a striker.

Thai people are somewhat worried about interim coach Sirisak Yodyardthai because coach Park often plays with 3 defenders but is very good at rotating the formation during the 90 minutes of play.

“They play fast, coordinate precisely and finish counter-attacks well. In the Vietnamese squad, I think Cong Phuong is still the most dangerous player. Thailand will have to prepare carefully for every small detail in the upcoming match,” Sirisak commented.

The great battle between Thailand and Vietnam is therefore even better!