With Tuan Anh absent, Cong Phuong played 8 minutes in Round 36 of J.League 2.

With Cong Phuong playing for only 8 minutes and Tuan Anh sidelined due to injury, the highly anticipated clash between Mito Hollyhock and Yokohama FC in Round 36 of J.League 2 on the afternoon of October 16th became less exciting, especially for Vietnamese fans.

Cong Phuong warms up before the match. (Screenshot)

The Mito Hollyhock Club's organizing committee has done everything possible to prepare for this notable match with the aim of promoting the image of the team and Ibaraki Prefecture to the Southeast Asian market, specifically Vietnam.

Vietnamese expatriates in Japan received invitations to watch the match, and fans entering K's denki Mito stadium were given Vietnamese flags. Furthermore, the home team, Mito Hollyhock, even wore unusual (red and black) uniforms with the Vietnamese flag printed on the chest alongside the Japanese flag.

Moreover, the match between Mito Hollyhock and Yokohama FC was broadcast live on Vietnamese television on Bóng đá TV channel to satisfy the expectations of the fans.

However, all the meticulous organizational preparations did not bring complete joy when, at the last minute, Tuan Anh was not included in the registration list, and Cong Phuong, as usual, sat on the bench.

According to information from Japan, Yokohama FC's head coach Hitoshi Nakata had previously included Tuan Anh in the starting lineup, but during training on October 13th, the midfielder suffered a recurrence of his knee injury after a collision with a teammate.

Images of Cong Phuong were promoted for months before the match in round 36. Photo: Mito Hollyhock

For two consecutive days, October 14th and 15th, Tuan Anh was unable to participate in training and preparation for the match in round 36, so it's not surprising that the Vietnamese national team player's name was not included in the squad list for the match on the afternoon of October 16th.

As for Cong Phuong, before the second leg of the 2016 J.League 2 season against Yokohama FC, the striker's regular position was also that of a substitute.

Previously, Cong Phuong had only been brought on as a substitute 4 times (3 times as a substitute, 1 time as a starter) but had not scored any goals in J.League 2, and his impact was negligible. Specifically in the match against Yokohama FC on October 16th, Cong Phuong was only used for the last 4 minutes of regular time plus 4 minutes of added time.

Mito Hollyhock took the lead with a header from Junya Hosokawa in the 25th minute, but in the 42nd minute, Naoki Nomura equalized 1-1 with a beautiful long-range shot for Yokohama FC.

In the 70th minute, Takuya Miyamoto came on to replace Shu Hiramatsu, and in the 86th minute, coach Takayuki Nishigaya brought on Cong Phuong to replace Frank Romero, along with the appearance of Ito Makito replacing Yosuke Yuzawa.

In the end, Mito Hollyhock drew 1-1 with Yokohama FC in round 36 of J.League 2. Cong Phuong, who had only been on the field for a few minutes, appeared outmatched in challenges with the opposing team's defenders and lacked opportunities to shoot or showcase his dribbling skills.

After 36 rounds, Mito Hollyhock is in 13th place with 42 points, while Yokohama FC is in 8th place with 49 points.

According to the Cultural Center