U23 Vietnam suffered losses after defeating U23 Malaysia; Man City entered the FA Cup final

U23 Vietnam suffered losses after winning U23 Malaysia

After losing Nguyen Ngoc Thang due to a red card in the opening match, U23 Vietnam continued to lose players due to penalty cards. Having received 2 yellow cards in the group stage, Ho Van Cuong is the next name of U23 Vietnam to be "suspended".

According to the tournament rules, players who receive 2 yellow cards (in any 2 matches) will not be allowed to play in the next match. Ho Van Cuong received his first yellow card in the match against U23 Kuwait. The player from Nghe An continued to be punished with a yellow card in the first half of the match against U23 Malaysia.

This means that Ho Van Cuong has received enough cards and is banned from playing in the match against U23 Uzbekistan in the final round of the 2024 U23 Asia group stage.

The replacement for Ho Van Cuong could be Nguyen Hong Phuc. The player of The Cong Viettel club was brought onto the field by coach Hoang Anh Tuan in the second half of the match against U23 Malaysia and played in the right-back position, pushing Ho Van Cuong up.

Currently, U23 Vietnam still has 3 people receiving 1 yellow card in the first 2 matches, including Nguyen Minh Quang, Vo Nguyen Hoang and Nguyen Manh Hung.

These players need to avoid unnecessary fouls to avoid receiving more cards, in the context that Vietnam is sure to reach the quarterfinals. Coach Hoang Anh Tuan of course needs the best force in the knockout matches which are more difficult than the group stage.

U23 Vietnam will play their final match against U23 Uzbekistan on April 23 at 10:30 p.m. Defender Nguyen Ngoc Thang has completed his 1-match suspension and can return to the squad.

These will be the decisive matches in Group D, determining the final teams to qualify for the quarter-finals of the U23 Asian Cup.

Hoang Duc confirms his future amid rumors of playing abroad

Vietnam Golden Ball 2023 Nguyen Hoang Duc officially decided his future after rumors of playing abroad.

Hoang Duc's current contract with The Cong is valid until January 2025. During the negotiation process, both sides expressed their goodwill to continue working together to achieve new successes.

In the latest development, Hoang Duc has reached an agreement to continue playing for the army team. "Duc always puts his number 1 priority on playing for his club, The Cong Viettel. Duc was trained here and has been attached to this place for many years. Duc also wishes to sign a 3-year contract here and set higher goals for the new season," Hoang Duc said.

The Cong Viettel also affirmed that they always create the best conditions for their players to continue to develop, affirm their talents, and contribute to the club as well as the national team.

Thus, Hoang Duc has put an end to the rumors of going abroad to play. Previously, this talented midfielder was said to be able to go to some clubs in Japan, Korea and Thailand.

By renewing his contract with The Cong Viettel, Hoang Duc will likely become one of the players receiving the "biggest" treatment in Vietnamese football.

Man City into FA Cup final

A few days after the disappointment of being eliminated from the Champions League, Man City entered the defense of their FA Cup title with a semi-final against Chelsea at Wembley without key striker Erling Haaland due to injury. However, this did not affect Pep Guardiola's team too much in controlling the match as this match saw key midfielder Rodri return to the starting lineup.

The first 45 minutes witnessed a back-and-forth match between the two teams. Although highly rated, Man City only had their only dangerous moment in the 14th minute, when Kevin De Bruyne made a smart pass to Phil Foden to enter the penalty area and get the ball past goalkeeper Petrovic, but the final shot from a very narrow angle was cleared by Cucurella.

Despite Chelsea having better possession, it was the Blues who had more shots and created more clear-cut chances. However, neither Nicolas Jackson, Palmer nor Noni Madueke could overcome the brilliance of goalkeeper Stefan Ortega, who was assigned to start in place of Ederson. Unable to capitalize on their chances, the two teams entered the break with a goalless draw.

In the second half, Man City replaced John Stones with Ruben Dias, who had health problems, but the Manchester team's defense played very shaky and continuously made bad passes. This created opportunities for Jackson to have two consecutive chances to finish in the 49th minute, but he could not overcome the excellent performance of goalkeeper Ortega.

These were also Chelsea's two most dangerous situations in the second half, because in the remaining minutes, the Blues' strikers did not create many chances to attack Ortega. Meanwhile, Man City's players also had a poor match and only when winger Jeremy Doku entered the field did the attacking game improve. However, there were not many dangerous situations.

It seemed like the match would go into extra time, but the surprise came in the 84th minute. Doku passed the ball to De Bruyne to escape down the wing and make a cross but was blocked by Petrovic, but midfielder Bernado Silva was there at the right time to score the rebound into the Chelsea net.

Man Utd appoints new technical director

Jason Wilcox, currently the Football Director of English First Division team Southampton, was invited by billionaire petrochemical corporation INEOS Sir Jim Ratcliffe to Man Utd to sit as Technical Director.

Man Utd's announcement stated: "Jason Wilcox joins Manchester United as technical director and will take effect immediately. Jason Wilcox will work with the technical department to achieve the highest efficiency. Jason Wilcox is the Director of Football at Southampton and previously the Director of the youth academy at Man City. He won the Premier League with Blackburn Rovers in 1995."

To get Jason Wilcox's services, Man Utd paid a compensation to Southampton. Jason Wilcox only worked at Southampton for 9 months before coming to Man Utd. Meanwhile, Man Utd's current technical director, Darrent Fletcher, continues to work in the leadership team at Man Utd at Carrington training academy and the first team.

Jason Wilcox, 53 years old, will advise on transfers, necessary players will be bought or no longer needed will be pushed away, to bring the highest efficiency and performance for Man Utd. Thus, the official information Man Utd sent out is very clear that Wilcox will work directly so that Man Utd can play more effectively. Previously, the "Red Devils" also wanted to hire Newcastle's sports director Daniel Ashworth, but this deal has not been finalized.

Xavi praises Real Madrid before the Clasico

In midweek, Real Madrid played a defensive game to draw 1-1 with Man City after 120 minutes, then won on penalties.

This result caused Real Madrid and coach Carlo Ancelotti to receive much criticism for their defensive style of play, along with opinions that the team was lucky.

This issue was reiterated by some reporters in the press conference preparing for "El Clasico", round 32 of La Liga at Bernabeu stadium (2am on April 22).

Coach Ancelotti reacted: "I have not seen any Real Madrid fans sad. We are happy.

As I have said many times, football has two aspects: defense and attack. Sometimes you have to focus on defense. I am ready to use 5 or 7 defenders."

The Real Madrid story was also mentioned with Xavi Hernandez, and the Barca captain had praise for his opponent.

"Real Madrid had to defend themselves against the strongest team in the world," Xavi said.

"Sometimes you don't want to, but the opponent overpowers you, forcing you to line up below the center circle. Moreover, the opponent is Man City."

Xavi praised the way Real Madrid defended him, while stressing that the Spanish Royal Club did everything completely legally.

"Real Madrid defended very well, that's the truth, and what they did was legal. There were situations in the game that had to be controlled, and they did very well, especially in the first half."

Xavi also commented that Real Madrid is currently one of the best teams in the world.

"It's clear that Real Madrid have a lot of potential and are one of the best clubs in the world."

Xavi's goal is to win the El Clasico with Barca, to increase their hopes of defending the La Liga title.

"For us this is the most important match of the season. Barca must win and put pressure on the top team. We try to play and win at the Bernabeu."