Midfielder Ngo Hoang Thinh: Being called up to the national team is not just to 'have enough food'

It took nearly 2 years since the match between the Vietnam National Team and the Cambodia National Team (5-0) in the 2019 Asian Cup qualifiers, which took place at My Dinh Stadium on October 10, 2017, for Ngo Hoang Thinh to be called back. This is the first time the midfielder born in 1992 has worked with coach Park Hang-seo.

Many people believe that the chance for Ngo Hoang Thinh to be on the official list of the Vietnam National Team for the match against the Malaysian and Indonesian National Teams is not much because the Vietnam National Team has a fairly stable midfield.

Ngo Hoang Thinh returns to the Vietnam National Team after nearly 2 years of absence. Photo: bongda

Currently, Coach Park Hang-seo has a series of quality central midfielders, imbued with the philosophy that the Korean strategist has built for the Vietnam National Team over the past time. Pham Duc Huy, Do Hung Dung, Nguyen Huy Hung... rarely disappoint Mr. Park. It is hard to believe that Coach Park Hang-seo will eliminate one of his "favorite students" to prioritize "newcomer" Ngo Hoang Thinh.

However, that does not mean that this call-up of the player currently on the payroll of Ho Chi Minh City Club is just to “sit down for the sake of it”. Previously, in the gathering to prepare for King’s Cup 2019 (June), Coach Park Hang-seo called up Nguyen Tuan Anh, a midfielder who was considered unsuitable for Mr. Park’s playing style.

Some experts predicted that the possibility of HAGL midfielder being used by Coach Park is extremely fragile. But what happened in reality? The Thai Binh player was in the starting lineup of 2/3 of the Vietnam National Team's recent matches (2 matches at King's Cup 2019 and 1 match at the World Cup 2022 qualifiers). Nguyen Tuan Anh has a chance, why not Ngo Hoang Thinh?

Ngo Hoang Thinh has caught the eye of coach Park Hang-seo (left). Photo: VFF

Assessing the chances of the midfielder from Nghe An, expert Doan Minh Xuong said: “Especially the case of Ngo Hoang Thinh. Before calling up this squad, Coach Park and Coach Lee went to Malaysia and Indonesia to monitor their opponents, so they have a good grasp of their playing style. Therefore, Hoang Thinh's strengths seem to meet the requirements of Coach Park Hang-seo.”

In short, the opportunity is in the hands of Thinh "bom". If he can demonstrate his ability in training sessions, especially if he can grasp the philosophy of Coach Park Hang-seo, the possibility of Ngo Hoang Thinh being retained, or even being able to play in the next 2 matches of the Vietnam National Team is not small.