U22 Vietnam: Who will coach Troussier give a chance to?

Time is not long, and there is not much "data" to analyze and compare, so the coaching staff must definitely work hard to find the best factors for the important test campaign ahead.

Before the friendly match against Ho Chi Minh City Club, the U22 Vietnam squad was "damaged" due to the important midfielder Cong Den's injury and was informed that he would not be able to participate in the last two practice matches before finalizing the roster. Obviously, this is bad news for the French coach because Cong Den is a player with real combat experience, good technique, strong will, and is targeted as a player who organizes the play... However, looking at it from another perspective, this is an opportunity for other factors, such as Xuan Tien, when the midfield has many potential players who can take on this important position.

A notable piece of information before that is that coach Troussier is… extremely irritable, especially when he “gave Van Cuong a break from practice” due to a mistake in passing the ball. Van Cuong is playing well at Song Lam Nghe An, but he seems to “fit” the new coach’s exercises and whether he can keep up with the current speed and requirements is a difficult question to answer?

Coach Philippe Troussier asked his players to have maximum concentration and quickly forget about the V-League because the SEA Games is the important tournament ahead. Photo: Hai Hoang

The latest information about the friendly match between U22 Vietnam and Ho Chi Minh City (result 2-3) also shows new results after the above urgent training process. It is easy to see that U22 Vietnam with 31 players called up, 1 injured, is being divided into 2 teams, all of whom are tested and evaluated. First of all, the first team that played in the first half against Ho Chi Minh City included goalkeeper Van Chuan, central defenders Quang Thinh, Tuan Tai, Ngoc Thang, midfielders Duc Phu, Xuan Tien, Minh Trong, Van Truong, strikers Van Do, Duc Viet and Thanh Nhan. Van Do scored a goal from a direct free kick and this is extremely good news for the French coach after what the Hanoi Police players have shown in the V-League and recent friendly matches.

Team 2 ofU22 VietnamIn the second half of the friendly match, surprisingly, goalkeeper Van Binh was in the goal and not Trung Kien or Huy Hoang. The defenders included Van Thang, Duy Cuong, Tuan Duong, midfielders Van Cuong, Thai Son, Duc Hoang, Van Phuong, and strikers Vi Hao, Quoc Viet, and Van Tung. Thus, in addition to the injured Cong Den, the recovering players such as Van Khang, Tien Long, Nhat Nam, and Dinh Duy were not tested.

The match results show that the first team seems to be "better" than the second team, but it is not yet possible to conclude which will be the main team, chosen later. Due to the lack of Cong Den, in the central midfield position, the first team of Mr. Troussier arranged the Xuan Tien-Duc Viet pair, which is noteworthy. A strong player, who tends to block like Duc Viet, will help Xuan Tien have the opportunity to organize attacks, promoting the strengths of each position. It is not easy, but hopefully this pair will play well, support each other well and shine together in each match.

Coach Philippe Troussier pays attention to Xuan Tien - an outstanding player in SLNA's shirt at V-League 2023. Photo: Hai Hoang

U20 player Van Binh deserves the trust "beyond his level" in the goal, after his senior Van Chuan, he is considered the number 1 goalkeeper of U22 Vietnam. Although he has not been promoted to the first team of Song Lam Nghe An, this goalkeeper has been able to withstand the heat very well in the U19, U20 regional and continental tournaments, so it is understandable that he is trusted early. Surely, after the last friendly match, a frame of 23 players will soon be revealed. Healthy and fair competition is taking place within U22 Vietnam, and players who grasp the coach's lessons well, perform well on the training ground and in friendly matches will have the advantage and the upper hand.

Another thing worth mentioning is that in the upcoming SEA Games, U22 Vietnam has the advantage of playing against weaker teams first and will meet U22 Thailand in the last match of the group stage. This schedule can help U22 Vietnam gradually get used to the challenges, from easy to difficult, from light to heavy, so that when they need to "explode", they have all the necessary conditions. In fact, with regional football, surprises in the group stage are very unlikely to happen. Everything is only unpredictable from the semi-finals, so hopefully the group stage will be the warm-up steps, getting used to the young players under the new coach.

Nearly a dozen names with hopes of participating in the SEA Games may have to wait for another tournament to show their talent, after the coach finalizes the final list. For Nghe An fans, it seems that the opportunity is coming to Xuan Tien and Van Binh, while Van Cuong may still face many difficulties? The exciting and fierce competition continues every day, every hour and that is a very welcome step, a very welcome step forward for youth football, even if it is only in the playground of a regional sports festival./.