U22 Vietnam pierces K.League star's net with new 'weapon'

(Baonghean.vn) – The U22 Vietnam attack line launched dozens of long-range and one-touch shots against the K.League Stars in a friendly match at My Dinh National Stadium.

Despite facing a strong opponent like K.League Star, Coach Huu Thang and his team still played confidently with a 2-striker formation. There were not many outstanding situations in the first 20 minutes, but for the rest of the first half, U22 Vietnam were the ones who played better and created many truly dangerous opportunities.

Striker Ha Duc Chinh had an unlucky day when he missed many opportunities - Photo: Hoai Hoan

On a day when Tuan Anh sat on the bench and Duy Manh played back, Luong Xuan Truong became the focus of the attacks. Most notably, in the 22nd minute, the U22 Vietnam midfielder's pass put Ha Duc Chinh in a position to shoot. Unfortunately, the striker continued to shoot high into the sky with his weaker foot.

However, just 2 minutes later, U22 Vietnam continued to demonstrate its ability to deploy diverse attacks with the explosive named Cong Phuong. After a dribble from the middle, Cong Phuong easily overcame the K.League Star defense and sent a pass across the opponent's goal, extremely favorable for Duc Chinh to rush in. It seemed that the opening goal had come to U22 Vietnam, but the SHB Da Nang striker's touch did not go as expected.

With this missed shot, Duc Chinh was injured and was taken off to make way for Le Thanh Binh. In the context of the K.League Stars not having the necessary cohesion in attacking coordination, U22 Vietnam continuously created clear opportunities in the 36th, 38th and 41st minutes.

Lam Ti Phong, Cong Phuong and Hong Duy were the players who had shots at different distances, however the excellence of the opposing team's goalkeeper made the U22 Vietnam strikers frustrated. In particular, Cong Phuong's powerful left-footed shot made the K.League Star goalkeeper have a lot of trouble.

Striker Cong Phuong played aggressively against the K.League Star players - Photo: Hoai Hoan

The first half ended without any goals, Cong Phuong and Xuan Truong were the two players who left a clear mark in the attacks of U22 Vietnam. Many long-range shots were fully utilized by U22 Vietnam. However, it is also necessary to mention a day of lack of concentration and disarray of the K.League Stars' defense.

In the second half, coach Nguyen Huu Thang sent both Quang Hai and Van Toan onto the field in the hope of finding a goal. However, the one who created the real dangerous situations towards the Korean goalkeeper's goal was Vu Van Thanh. In the 51st and 55th minutes, the HAGL defender had 2 tricky shots. One from outside the penalty area, low and deep, and the other close to the goal. Both made the Korean goalkeeper have to fly as far as possible to keep a clean sheet.

Not long after being put on the field to replace Cong Phuong, Tuan Anh made everyone remember him with a shot from outside the penalty area in the 68th minute. The move made the viewers feel regretful.

Defender Vu Van Thanh repeatedly made things difficult for the K.League Star goalkeeper - Photo: Hoai Hoan

Finally, the goal came to U22 Vietnam in the 70th minute. It was a counter-attack initiated by Xuan Truong, the ball fell to Thanh Binh before Van Toan ran up and finished with one touch. The shot, although it touched a K.League Star defender, was enough to beat Jo Hyeon Woo.

With only about 10 minutes left in the match, U22 Vietnam continued to launch "cannon shots" at the K.League Star goal. In total, U22 Vietnam launched about 20 long-range shots from outside the penalty area. This may be a requirement from coach Nguyen Huu Thang for his students to perfect their attacking ability. If the strikers encounter difficulties, they must pass the ball back to the second line to finish.

Meanwhile, K.League Star has not been successful with set-pieces or corner kicks yet when facing the high concentration of the central defender pair Van Khanh - Tien Dung. At the end of the friendly match, U22 Vietnam deserved to win 1-0 and coach Nguyen Huu Thang has reason to be satisfied with this match.

Trung Kien