U20 Vietnam first time out to sea

(Baonghean.vn) - The fact that U20 Vietnam is present at the biggest youth football festival in the world in Korea is already a big surprise. But coach Hoang Anh Tuan wants to have more surprises when he announced that Vietnam is not going to the U20 World Cup to go on a vacation. Mr. Tuan wants to create a new history for Vietnamese football.

Right after the historic earthquake of qualifying for the U20 World Cup, Vietnam is now ready to continue writing the fairy tale in the opening match against New Zealand.

Coach Hoang Anh Tuan confidently shook hands with New Zealand coach Darren Bazeley. Photo: Internet

Group E consists of 4 teams: France, New Zealand, Honduras and the rules also select 4 third-place teams with the best records to enter the round of 16, so whichever team wins the opening match will have a 90% chance of going on. The schedule is favorable for Vietnam when they will meet New Zealand (May 22), France (May 25) and Honduras (May 28).

Identify your competitors

The strongest, without a doubt, is U20 France. They are the reigning champions of the 2016 European U19 Championship after beating Italy 4-0 in the final. Including this tournament, France has participated in the FIFA U20 World Cup 6 times, finishing fourth in 2011 and winning the championship 2 years later with the participation of Paul Pogba - the most expensive player in the world today.

France is definitely the number 1 candidate for the top spot as well as the championship. Despite the absence of their biggest star Kylian Mbappe (Monaco) who did not come to Korea this time after being promoted to the French national team. There is no doubt that France is definitely the number 1 candidate for the top spot as well as the championship. The goal of U20 Vietnam when facing them is to lose less.

New Zealand was the host of the 2015 U.20 World Cup, where they qualified for the round of 16 after beating Myanmar 5-1. In the Oceania qualifiers, New Zealand easily won the championship after beating Vanuatu 5-0 (who had just drawn 1-1 with U.20 Vietnam in a friendly match) in the final.

New Zealand's strength lies in the 7 players currently playing for the national team. New Zealand has a simple style of play, mostly long and high balls. The ball is passed from the defense to the front line, from the wings it is crossed into the opponent's 16.5m area. The young New Zealand players are all over 1.8m tall and there is no other way for the U20 Vietnam players to play close, tightly holding the long pass.

Honduras is an “unknown factor” because this is the team that has participated in the U.20 World Cup the most times in Group E with 7 appearances. However, in all 6 previous appearances, they could not get past the group stage. Up to 7 players of U.20 Honduras participated in the U.17 World Cup 2015. Because they are the last team to meet them, coach Hoang Anh Tuan and his team can calculate to their advantage.

Calculation

Regarding the opening match, New Zealand coach Darren Bazeley set a target of winning all 3 points against Vietnam: "They are our first opponents and this is also their first time participating in the tournament so we must aim for a win in the opening match."

It seems that both Vietnam and New Zealand have identified their opening match opponents as their main rivals in the race for the next round. During training sessions in Korea, coach Hoang Anh Tuan has repeatedly practiced defending high balls and intercepting on both flanks.

Everything is ready for the first match. Photo: Internet

In theory, the anti-high ball is very simple, not allowing them to control the ball much, especially long range. Players must limit the situations where they go close to the sideline to cross high into the inside. But the most difficult part of the anti-high ball defense system is to cover and prevent the second and third situations from arising.

Experts say New Zealand is the favorite, but a draw is not out of the question. We will be paying close attention to the final group stage match against Honduras, which is considered to be decisive for the ticket to the next round.

Coach Hoang Anh Tuan confidently said: “We are very proud to be at the World Cup. This is a great opportunity to develop Vietnamese football. I hope that through the team’s performance at the World Cup, Vietnamese football will have more motivation to develop.”

More than 90 Vietnamese hearts are behind the team in the first time the U20 boys are present at a big arena. Be confident in victory!

AT