U23 Vietnam with concerns about goalkeeper position

(Baonghean.vn) - It is not difficult to conclude that the list of U23 Vietnam preparing for the friendly match with U23 Malaysia right after Tet will be the framework for the 29th SEA Games in August. Looking at the list, many people will worry about how Huu Thang will lead the U23 Vietnam team to the final match?

Of the 23 players called, 9 are currently on the payroll of HAGL, including: goalkeeper Le Van Truong, Le Van Son, Vu Van Thanh, A Hoang, Tran Huu Dong Trieu, Nguyen Van Toan, Hoang Thanh Tung, Nguyen Phong Hong Duy, Nguyen Cong Phuong.

The unfortunate absence is midfielder Nguyen Tuan Anh, who is recovering from an injury. Luong Xuan Truong, who received the Silver Ball award for Vietnam in 2016, also cannot attend due to his busy playing for Gangwon Club in the K-League Classic.

Tuan Anh and Xuan Truong are still the pillars at SEA Games 29.

Next is Hanoi FC with 4 players participating: goalkeeper Phi Minh Long, Do Duy Manh, Nguyen Quang Hai, Pham Duc Huy. Clubs such as SLNA, FLC Thanh Hoa, SHB Da Nang, Saigon FC, Viettel, Binh Dinh all contribute 1-2 players. Huu Thang's formula for calling up U23 Vietnam this time is HAGL + U20 VN.

Defense concerns

As U23 players, the age considered to be the beginning of football players' maturity, many of the names called this time rarely play in the starting lineup in V-League 2017. All three goalkeepers Phi Minh Long (Hanoi FC), Bui Tien Dung (FLC Thanh Hoa), Le Van Truong (HAGL) have not played once, which makes it difficult for them to feel the ball well when standing in the team's goal. Goalkeeper Phi Minh Long, of Hanoi FC, who is likely to be the starting goalkeeper in the upcoming friendly match, has also lost his position to his colleague Van Cong. In many matches, Phi Minh Long was not even registered in the competition list, the reserve goalkeeper for Van Cong was goalkeeper Anh Duc.

Compared to the goalkeeper position, the defense line has Van Thanh, who is the mainstay of HAGL, starting in all 4 first matches of V-League 2017. Left-back Ho Tan Tai of Binh Dinh is the most prominent, Van Son is only the 3rd reserve option. The two central defenders Bui Tien Dung (Viettel) and Hoang Van Khanh (SLNA) are more likely to start than Dinh Trong (Sai ​​Gon FC) because of their ability and experience in the past few seasons. In particular, Van Khanh has 3 matches in the Nghe An team's jersey and is highly appreciated by the audience.

According to our observations, there are only 9 players who are the backbone of the teams participating in V-League 2017, namely: Nguyen Quang Hai (Hanoi FC), Le Thanh Binh (FLC.TH), Vu Van Thanh, A Hoang, Nguyen Van Toan, Nguyen Cong Phuong, Hong Duy (HAGL), Tran Dinh Trong (Sai ​​Gon FC), Ha Duc Chinh (SHB.DN). In which, Nguyen Quang Hai (Hanoi FC), Le Thanh Binh (FLC.TH), Vu Van Thanh, Tran Dinh Trong (Sai ​​Gon FC), Ha Duc Chinh (SHB.DN) are the names that the coaches trust the most and most of them are playing in the attack line.

Surplus and deficit in midfield

Huu Thang is taking an adventure with the "card" Cong Phuong.

Huu Thang is currently without the two most creative midfielders in Vietnamese football, Tuan Anh and Xuan Truong. The forward line has up to 8 names, all of whom are better at blocking than creative in regulating the match. The audience thinks that Bui Tien Dung is a good option, but perhaps coach Huu Thang will choose the more experienced duo of Dong Trieu and Duy Manh. This is a duo that experts consider to have a lot of steel but lack softness and creativity in organizing attacks.

On the right wing, Van Toan is an option that has been tested at the national team level at the AFC Cup. The two names Thanh Tung and Duc Huy can play as substitutes for the HAGL player. On the left wing, Hong Duy is a fairly well-known name, but Quang Hai is likely to be chosen because in addition to physical strength and technique, the Hanoi FC player also has a strange quality and the ability to create opportunities himself.

In the 4-4-1-1 formation, the position of the withdrawn striker seems to be reserved for Cong Phuong. What is quite worrying is that at HAGL, Cong Phuong also takes on this task, followed by Dong Trieu and Ideguchi. It seems that the 4-4-1-1 style of play, with the withdrawn striker position, will easily turn into a 4-2-3-1 with Cong Phuong as the match organizer. However, Cong Phuong's multi-touch, dribbling style of play is a huge minus when playing in the organizing position.

The position of the striker is a race between Duc Chinh, Tuan Tai and Thanh Binh. With impressive performance in recent times, the striker of SHB Da Nang is more prominent than the other. Tuan Tai of SLNA will also have difficulty ranking above Thanh Binh, who is a regular starter for FLC Thanh Hoa.

It is not difficult, the U23 Vietnam team this time will revolve around the two teams HAGL and U20 because of that. Many young players who became famous in the U19 team in 2014 under coach Hoang Anh Tuan are being highly valued in this U23 Vietnam training camp. But fans still see names like Duy Thuong, Cong Son, Dinh Son, Van Tram from Viettel or Thanh Chung, Van Kien who are playing very well at Hanoi Club... also worthy of being on the U23 Vietnam team.

An Thanh