Midfielder Le Tan Tai officially says goodbye to the Vietnam national team

Yesterday, December 19, Le Tan Tai confirmed that he will officially say goodbye to the national team. Looking back at the 10-year journey of this midfielder wearing the Vietnamese national team jersey, it can be seen that Tan Tai has experienced both bitterness and sweetness.

Tan Tai (left) unexpectedly said goodbye to the AFF Cup 2014 with a serious injury in the second leg of the semi-final against Malaysia, forcing him to leave the field midway. Photo: Thanh Ha

Despite the sadness of the 2014 AFF Cup, when the Vietnamese team was eliminated in the semi-finals and he himself suffered a serious injury, Tan Tai still maintained an optimistic attitude. Talking about the recent defeat of the Vietnamese team, the midfielder currently playing for B.Binh Duong said: “The defeat was simply due to the expertise, mentality, and playing experience of the young players, and there was no match-fixing. Everyone tried their best to achieve the highest results, but the sky was not in their favor, the Vietnamese team lost to Malaysia, Tai and everyone else were very sad.

Tai can only feel that, as for the coach using unreasonable tactics, or the mistakes of the assistants... Tai himself is not qualified enough to talk about that. The public has the right to doubt, but Tai thinks "the upright tree is not afraid of dying standing", so after failure, all his brothers must find a way to stand up. Now that he has said goodbye to the national team, Tai can only devote himself to the B.Binh Duong Club, because this is the place that gives Tai "food, clothing, and money" to support himself and his family.

10 years with the national team…

Regarding his decision to leave the national team, Tan Tai shared: “Honestly, Tai is leaving the team at this time not because his physical strength and expertise are no longer guaranteed, basically Tai's thinking is different from before. Tai thinks this is the right time for him to focus all his heart and soul on his club, while at the same time creating conditions for young players to express themselves. Tai is telling the truth, himself or his age is not a problem for Tai right now.

The story of Tai leaving the national team was planned before the AFF Cup 2014 started, so the recent injury, or someone saying that because VFF treated him badly, Tai left the national team is not correct.

Besides Tan Tai, another player in the Vietnamese team participating in the AFF Cup 2014, central defender Le Phuoc Tu, has also announced his retirement from the national team to make way for the younger generation. Currently, Phuoc Tu and Tan Tai are teammates at B.Binh Duong Club.

Yesterday, the head of the Vietnamese team, Mai Duc Chung, also called to inquire about Tai's injury, probably because the press alerted him. Everyone thought the injury was nothing, but it was actually quite serious. Tai crushed his left talus bone and tore 20-30% of his left leg ligaments, and had to rest for a month before he could return to normal training.

Of course, Tai himself did not think about the problem at all, and never said that VFF treated him badly, but only said that he was a bit sad because there was not a word of inquiry or encouragement, but only blame and suspicion. As for treatment, when I get injured, I have to take care of myself first, I do not ask anyone to take care of me, if VFF supports me in the future, Tai will thank me, if not, it is okay.

During his playing career, Tan Tai is one of the players who has contributed a lot to the national team. Looking back at what he has done, the midfielder from Khanh Hoa confided: “In 10 years wearing the U23 and Vietnam national team jerseys, Tai has many happy and sad memories. It would be too long to tell them here. Tai just thinks that he has tried his best in any situation, whether he was on the field or had to sit on the bench. As for evaluating Tai's national team career as successful or unsuccessful, it would be more objective to let the fans see it.”

“I have faith in the U19s”

As Tan Tai shared, the fact that veterans like him leave the national team is an opportunity for young people to show themselves, contributing their talent and strength to the national team. Speaking of young people, the former midfielder of K.Khanh Hoa himself has a lot of faith in his juniors, especially the U19 team that has been making a splash in recent times.

Tan Tai said: “It is no longer a matter of expecting U19 to create a new look for Vietnamese football, because in reality they have done this before. The U19 players attracted a lot of fans to the stadium, creating great trust and love with beautiful playing style and admirable dedication.

Not only Tai, but also his teammates in the national team and the club have faith in this generation of players. Hopefully, the U19 players will do better than their seniors, helping Vietnamese football, U23 and the Vietnam National Team achieve success in the future.

Of course, with that belief, Tai also agrees to let the U19 players combine with some good players from other clubs to join the U23 team to participate in the 28th SEA Games. At the same time, Tai believes that they will create a new wave for Vietnamese football, at least regaining the love of the country's football fans.

Sharing his experiences after serving in the national team, in order to help the younger generation of players adapt best when wearing the red flag with yellow star, Tan Tai said: “There will be many relationships that influence your expertise, the problem is that you yourself must maintain kindness, focus, and concentrate on only one task, which is playing football. Only then can you survive long-term as a player, as well as a career that will help you support yourself and your family. Tai thinks that the U19 players have been fully equipped with all the knowledge and principles of conduct, but he still has to repeat it because Tai thinks that is the most important thing to have a successful career.

When you join the national team, you should be comfortable, have confidence in yourself, and try your best to be recognized. Tai also had difficulties in his relationships with his teammates, but thinking back, Tai felt there was nothing to regret, because he still maintained his stance and tried his best during the training sessions with the national team.

Happy with B.Binh Duong

Besides his mark on the national team, Tan Tai's career as a player at the club level also has many things to contemplate. And according to this midfielder, after changing teams 3 times, he has realized many things are not as he initially thought, when he was still wearing the K.Khanh Hoa shirt, and at the same time feels that he has also matured a lot.

Tan Tai confided: “There are many things that make me uncomfortable and sad, but they have made me grow up a lot, especially in my thinking. Looking back at my football career, Tai feels very lucky to have been bought by an ambitious club like B.Binh Duong and given the opportunity to play.

After more than 10 years of playing professional football, going through many seasons, Tai was very happy to lift the V-League Championship Cup for the first time with B.Binh Duong. That moment was unforgettable, it was the motivation for Tai to devote himself, to make every effort to help the team of Thu Dau Mot reap the next successes.

Saying goodbye to the national team, Tai has only one goal left at the club. The remaining 2 years of his contract with B.Binh Duong will be 2 years where Tai will give his all. Tai will not think about the future at all and only wants to focus on B.Binh Duong. It is difficult to say about the future, so whether he will return to contribute to his hometown team Khanh Hoa in the final years of his football career, Tai cannot be sure.

According to TTVH