Philippine media wary of Phan Van Duc and the U23 Vietnam team

The newspaper commented: “Earlier this year, Vietnam reached the AFC U23 Championship Finals and only lost to Uzbekistan U23 in extra time. Nguyen Quang Hai finished second in the top scorer list with five goals in that tournament. The midfielder also scored two goals in the 2018 AFF Cup. What is special is that Quang Hai is only 21 years old. The Vietnamese team also has two experienced veteran players, Anh Duc and Van Quyet, of which Van Quyet is the captain. Two of Vietnam's three central defenders, Tran Dinh Trong and Do Duy Manh, are members of the Vietnam U23 team. Both are only 21 years old. Another notable player of Vietnam is Phan Van Duc, who also won a silver medal in the 2018 AFC U23 Championship."

"It can be said that the Vietnamese team is built on a framework of young players along with some experienced players. They have achieved success at the Asian level. Although Le Cong Vinh is no longer playing, the Vietnamese team still has quality players and they are on the right track," the newspaper said.

Philippine press is wary of Phan Van Duc and the U23 Vietnam team. Photo: Hai Thinh

Predicting the semi-final, Rappler said: “The Vietnamese team usually plays with a 3-5-2 formation. With a large number of midfielders in the middle of the field, Vietnam can make it difficult for the Philippines to control the ball. Vietnam's full-backs like Trong Hoang and Hong Duy can make the Philippines' wingers work hard."

The newspaper also said that the Philippines has hope to win at My Dinh Stadium when recalling the past: "The Philippines had an impressive victory at My Dinh in 2010. Four years later, the Malaysian team led by Dollah Salleh won 4-2 at My Dinh in the second leg, after they lost 1-2 in the first leg, thereby eliminating Vietnam from the AFF Cup. Two years later, Vietnamese fans had to suffer even greater pain when Indonesia drew 2-2 at My Dinh. They overcame Vietnam to win a ticket to the final with a total score of 4-2. It was a surprising match when the Vietnamese goalkeeper was sent off and a central defender had to play the role of an emergency goalkeeper for the rest of the match, while Indonesia played defense."

According to Rappler, "Vietnam's young and fast players will be a tough test for the Philippines' defense, which has an average age of 32. Fortunately, the Philippines will play the first leg at home in Panaad Stadium next Sunday."

Tonight, Coach Park Hang-seo and his team encountered problems when entering the Philippines but were able to return to the hotel before dinner. According to the plan, the Vietnam team will have 3 training sessions before entering the official match taking place at 6:30 p.m. on December 2 at Panaad Stadium, Bacolod City (Philippines).

Up to 19/23 Philippine players participating in this AFF Cup were born or at least trained abroad. And at the end of the group stage, their force will likely be reduced to 18 people when 5 players are either injured or have to return to their home clubs.

Vietnam National Team: The appearance of the "2008 AFF Cup champion"

(Baonghean.vn) - After more than 20 years of regional football integration, we still only have the 2008 AFF Cup Gold Medal, so people often compare the current team with the team under coach H.Calisto. It is quite surprising that they have many similarities, making fans start to think more about the Gold Cup.