V.League 2022: A challenge for SLNA

It will be at least five more months before the V.League 2022 season resumes, but teams are already recruiting players and changing coaches extensively. Clubs that finished above SLNA in the V.League 2021 season are undergoing a complete transformation of their squads and coaching staff. Most notably, Hai Phong has seen the departure of its first-team players, including foreign players like D. Fagan, J. Mpande, J. Luynh, and Vietnamese-American players Martin Lo and A. Schmidt.

The last group underwent troop changes and general replacements.

For a long time, Hai Phong has been considered "SLNA version 2.0," with coach Pham Tuan Anh, originally from Nghe An, sitting on the coaching bench. It was therefore normal for former SLNA players like Manh Hung, Van Hanh, and Khac Cuong to be given opportunities. Bringing in coach Chu Dinh Nghiem and terminating the contracts of 15 or 16 players seems to indicate that Chairman Tran Van Hoan is aiming for a completely new Hai Phong team.

Xuan Manh during a recent training session with SLNA. Photo courtesy of Duc Anh.

Initially, Chairman Hoan planned to bring in 7 players to help the team avoid relegation, but when the V.League was cancelled, Hai Phong underwent a major overhaul. Lacking a youth training program, the team will likely rely heavily on players from HAGL, Hanoi FC, and Viettel. Hai Phong's foreign player selection focuses on South Korean players recommended by coach Park Hang-seo. Naturally, their goal is a top 5 finish in the 2022 V.League, and their ambitions extend beyond that, as coach Chu Dinh Nghiem is currently the best coach in the V.League.

After parting ways with Brazilian head coach Mano Polking, Ho Chi Minh City FC's chairman, Nguyen Huu Thang, shifted his focus to using a domestic coach. Having failed with his previous attempts to bring in successful foreign coaches and acquire many well-known players, Huu Thang changed his strategy. Before Ho Chi Minh City FC, Binh Duong had already employed this tactic and achieved success with "Vietnamese Chelsea," but the Thong Nhat Stadium team did not.

Along with Hai Phong, Ho Chi Minh City FC is also a team competing to avoid relegation.SLNAAs someone in the know, Ho Chi Minh City FC Chairman Nguyen Huu Thang understands that it's time for this supposedly wealthy club to start over, taking a slow but steady approach. Bringing back coach Minh Chien, currently managing Ba Ria-Vung Tau, to Thong Nhat Stadium seems to indicate that Ho Chi Minh City FC is aiming for a longer-term goal rather than immediate success. Coach Minh Chien is considered to be skilled in youth development and has a deep understanding of the V.League.

The group is spending money lavishly.

Meanwhile, with a budget of around 300 billion VND for the three-season financial cycle, Binh Dinh is sparing no expense on player acquisitions. With 10 players already gone and 9 new players arriving at Quy Nhon Stadium, it seems coach Duc Thang's spending spree hasn't stopped there. The Central Vietnam underdog has shown its ambition by quickly signing most of the key players from the recently disbanded Than Quang Ninh team.

A training session of SLNA Club. Photo courtesy of Duc Anh.

Vietnamese football still has a few established coaches who are "lying low," such as Le Huynh Duc and Hoang Van Phuc, and they are ready to reappear as coaches. Clearly, SLNA will have to compete in what is predicted to be a much more fiercely competitive V.League 2022 season. Besides receiving substantial funding, V.League teams are now recruiting coaches and players without being constrained by the "team loyalty" mentality of using local talent.

Currently, SLNA is promoting a number of young players to the first team for training and rolling out the red carpet to invite veterans back to Vinh Stadium to play for their hometown team. How to integrate the old and new players, while focusing on SLNA's development direction in the coming years, is an art of strategic planning for the coach. The burden still rests on Coach Huy Hoang's shoulders, both in the short and long term.