Vietnam team vs Yemen: Who will share the burden with Quang Hai and Cong Phuong?

For a cautious person like Mr. Park, even if Duy Manh does not play, there will not be many opportunities for Nguyen Thanh Chung and Ho Tan Tai. He will prioritize "rotating" the players who have played rather than using new players.

Maintain defense

Quang Hai is still the top choice in the front line. Photo: AFC

Observing the tournaments of U23, Olympic Vietnam and the national team, the defense is the place where Mr. Park changed the least. Unless there is an injury or a penalty card, the Korean coach will change personnel, so it is understandable that defenders Nguyen Thanh Chung and Ho Tan Tai have few opportunities. When in the goal, Lam "Tay" is showing stability with the advantage of the longest arm span among the 3 goalkeepers, the coaching board also finds it difficult to give opportunities to the 2 goalkeepers Bui Tien Dung and Nguyen Tuan Manh.

The “three musketeers” Que Ngoc Hai, Bui Tien Dung and Do Duy Manh all played the full two matches but still reminded people of Dinh Trong, who is currently receiving treatment for an injury in Korea. The opponent at the 2019 Asian Cup is rated higher but it is clear that Ngoc Hai is not as good in the middle as he is on the left because covering is not the strong point of the Viettel team’s central defender.

Bui Tien Dung and Do Duy Manh both made mistakes, with the Iraqi and Iranian strikers having big bodies and playing at a fast pace, so being in the wrong position will cost them. Duy Manh, in addition to the two yellow cards, was also fined 5,000 USD and his somewhat tense mentality made his right wing weaker than usual.

The midfield is constantly being changed by Mr. Park, changes that only he knows exactly why. The names Hong Duy, Van Hau, Trong Hoang, Hung Dung, Van Dai, Xuan Truong, Duc Huy, Huy Hung have all been on the field but only Hung Dung played both matches.

Change the attack line

Van Duc has shown signs of overload. Photo: AFC

The reason why the midfield is so much disrupted is because up to now, Mr. Park still does not have a satisfactory pair of central midfielders. Hung Dung, Xuan Truong, Duc Huy, Huy Hung each have their own strengths and weaknesses and with no other choice, the coaching board had to choose Hung Dung and find someone to pair with the Hanoi FC player, depending on the situation.

If midfielder Hung Dung is an irreplaceable name, then in the 3-4-3 formation, Quang Hai is always the number 1 choice. The names Quang Hai, Cong Phuong, Van Toan, Van Duc, Duc Chinh and Tien Linh all entered the field one after another. If Tien Linh could not show much in just a few minutes, Duc Chinh showed that he was still a "reserve". Only Cong Phuong showed confidence when facing the defense consisting of tall defenders of Iraq and Iran.

In the position of winger Van Toan, Van Duc still shows his aggressiveness but it seems that the player from Nghe An has shown signs of being overloaded. Playing continuously, being pushed far away from the goal by the opponent, retreating deep to defend makes Van Duc no longer have sharp attacks. It is very likely that Van Duc will return to the role of tactical reserve like Cong Phuong used to be in charge of.

It seems that Mr. Park has calculated this in advance, because besides Van Toan, Minh Vuong is also a good choice for the wing position. Obviously, when Quang Hai is identified by the opponent, we need to "support" to share the burden of the attack.