Van Duc and Tien Linh repay the trust with victory

The replacement for Tien Linh in this historic battle is Van Duc and as usual,SLNA strikerwas again assigned the task of strengthening the defense on the left flank of the Vietnam national team to protect the score of 2-0. But when he had the chance, Van Duc overcame the opponent's pursuit, overcame the suspicion of someone that he was losing his form and killer instinct, to create a masterpiece in the 78th minute with a left-footed shot that had accumulated energy for a long time.

Van Duc scored a goal that was considered a masterpiece in this match.

The “Great Spring Victory of the Year of the Tiger 2022” in the 3rd Qualifying Round of the World Cup between Vietnam and China (3-1) marked a historic milestone not only for Vietnamese football but also for the Southeast Asian region. This is also the first historic victory of Vietnam against a neighboring team that once participated in the 2002 World Cup at home, when from 1997 to now, through 6 meetings, the Golden Star Warriors have never received any positive results.

This glorious victory of the Vietnam National Team is the common victory of Vietnamese football under the talented command of Head Coach Park Hang-seo in the key and decisive match in the 3rd Qualifying Round. When facing the top teams in the continent, from the beginning, the Vietnam National Team determined the mindset of learning and competing to gradually reach new heights and only devoted all their strength to a few matches with opponents considered to be of equal strength in the group, possibly the Oman National Team and the Chinese National Team. Because the neighboring team Thailand had previously entered the 3rd qualifying round twice (2002, 2018) but only won 4 points from 4 draws and then only won 2 points from 2 draws. With the first convincing victory against the Chinese National Team, the regional football record was in the hands of Coach Park Hang-seo and his team and of course, once again we surpassed the Thais in this prestigious playground.

This big match on the first night of the Lunar New Year 2022 is not simply the "determination to win" of the Vietnam National Team shouted on the training ground in the days before Tet. It is also not just a temporary calculation of coach Park Hang-seo and his team when they see that their opponents have many problems with foreign players or the captain's position and the must-win mentality of a team considered to be big.

What made the team enter the game with alertness and excitement, the certainty and sublimation in each position on the field of Coach Park Hang-seo and his team originated from the daily growth of the golden star warriors in the past 4 years when entering the continental playground. When Hung Dung returned, the backbone of the Vietnam team truly became more flexible and solid than ever. Hung Dung gave strength to release the capacity of Hoang Duc-Quang Hai. At that time, the remaining players such as Tien Linh and Van Duc had the opportunity to approach the opponent's goal (for Linh to score the goal to increase the score to 2-0), had space to roam with the strength that had been suppressed for a long time by the defensive task (for Duc to score the goal of his life to increase the score to 3-0). The return of Hung Dung and the excellent performance of the Vietnam team captain can be said to be the decisive factor, the core of all the cores of the victory of the Vietnam team in this historic battle.

There have been excellent players in the Vietnam national team in the past for various reasons (injuries, penalty cards, Covid-19, loss of form...) but the team always has the necessary reinforcements, even in the most difficult times. The maturity and power of Tuan Hai, despite only being assigned the task 3 times, is an excellent signal for the Vietnamese national team's attack. Defender Tan Tai's good professional ability and "luck" when facing Chinese football is another bright spot for the Vietnam national team, constantly surprising opponents in both home and away matches in this third qualifying round.

What is more noteworthy is that Mr. Park Hang-seo's vision and trust in his favorite children like Tien Linh or Van Duc has once again been proven and fully rewarded. Tien Linh with 8 goals in the World Cup qualifiers is certainly the leading scorer of the Vietnam National Team and this record will not stop. In the 3rd qualifying round, Tien Linh could not maintain his usual form, at times he had to step back to make room for Mr. Park for a few new players, then contracted Covid-19 when the team really needed him in the attack. And Vietnam's number 1 striker returned at the right time at My Dinh Stadium to continue to prove that everything is still within reach, in the steady steps of the Vietnam National Team.

The replacement for Tien Linh in this historic battle was Van Duc and as usual, the SLNA striker was assigned to strengthen the defense on the left flank of the Vietnam National Team to protect the 2-0 score. But when he had the chance, Van Duc overcame the opponent's pursuit, overcame the suspicion of those who thought he was losing his form and killer instinct, to create a masterpiece in the 78th minute with a left-footed shot that had accumulated energy for a long time even though it was more than 25m away from the goal, the ball bounced off the post and flew into the net before the Chinese National Team goalkeeper fell in despair. Van Duc has returned in a more wonderful way to Vietnamese football and SLNA like Mr. Park Hang-seo and many fans who have followed every step of this young man from the rice fields.

That was a memorable opening and the return of the Vietnamese national team's belief in victory, starting from the Spring of Nham Dan 2022. The innovation and renewal of the Vietnamese national team after 2 matches against the Australian and Chinese national teams by Mr. Park Hang-seo has shown to be more correct, necessary and effective than ever.