Coach Park and the 'wrong foot' plan

Doan Van Hau was absent because SC Heerenveen did not agree to release him. Although Thanh Tinh and Ngoc Bao were available, Mr. Park still called up Dung Quang Nho and Thien Duc, the left-wing players. But after more than 2 weeks of training and friendly matches, Coach Park Hang-seo surprised everyone by eliminating these two left-footed players.

Who will replace Van Hau?

Mr. Park is thinking of playing against the odds. Photo: AFC

This is quite surprising because looking back at the remaining options, there are quite a few problems. Currently, in the U23 Vietnam squad, there are only three left-footed players capable of playing on this wing, including Do Thanh Thinh, Le Ngoc Bao and Trieu Viet Hung.

What worries everyone is that Trong Hung and Thanh Thinh are players who have been injured since SEA Games 30 and have not fully recovered yet. Meanwhile, Ngoc Bao and Dinh Trong were injured and had to apply ice packs after the practice match with Binh Duong on December 28.

So Viet Hung is the only healthy name that can play. But the reality at HAGL shows that with his skinny body and poor stamina, Viet Hung can hardly plow through the whole 90 minutes continuously. Who will take Van Hau's position is still a secret question. In fact, the right wing with the presence of Ho Tan Tai and Truong Van Thai Quy is considered stronger than the left wing. Even pushing Tan Tai to the left wing is not a bad option.

So by not sending both Dung Quang Nho and Thien Duc to Thailand, is Mr. Park taking a risk, making things difficult for himself, or does he have other calculations? One thing is for sure, with his cautious personality, the Korean coach will not be foolish enough to take risks in such an important tournament.

Play against odds

While Thanh Thinh and Dinh Trong have not yet determined the exact date they can recover, Mr. Park must consider using versatile players like Trong Dai and Duc Chien. Photo: AFC

In the past, Coach Park has arranged many times for players to play on the wrong foot. Left midfielder Phan Van Duc of SLNA was once arranged to play the role of right back, recently at SEA Games 30, left back Ho Tuan Tai was arranged to play as right wing midfielder. In the world, there are still coaches who arrange to play on the wrong foot like that. Players who have to play "on the wrong foot" may have some difficulty in climbing the sidelines or crossing with their weaker foot, but the opponent will also "cross their feet" when facing each other.

In the practice match with B.Binh Duong, Mr. Park Hang-seo also unexpectedly arranged left midfielder Nguyen Trong Hung to play right back. It seems that he wanted to recreate the image of Van Duc in the match with Myanmar or in his calculations, he saw that if he let Trong Hung play left wing, when his physical strength was not really good, his ability to participate in defense on this wing would be limited.

While Thanh Thinh and Dinh Trong have not yet been able to recover, Mr. Park must consider using versatile players like Trong Dai and Duc Chien. In the 3-center-back formation, it is essential that the players understand each other and cover each other well, otherwise it will be extremely dangerous.

He currently has 8 defenders, with the current situation, it is likely that the next 2 players to be eliminated in the next few days will be in the midfield and forward lines. Over the past 2 years, in the face of difficulties, Mr. Park Hang-seo has always known how to find the most optimal solution to overcome difficulties.

Two years ago, at the 2018 AFC U23 Championship, he discovered Van Duc and Xuan Manh - players who joined the team late. We will wait and see who else the Korean coach will discover next.