VFF keeps coach Hoang Van Phuc

Speaking to several newspapers, VFF President Nguyen Trong Hy affirmed that VFF will not change its policy of signing a long-term contract with coach Hoang Van Phuc, despite the failure of the Vietnam national team in the 2015 Asian Cup qualifiers.

It is almost certain that coach Hoang Van Phuc will continue to lead the Vietnam national team.
Photo: VSI

Mr. Hy’s statement immediately made the supporters of Coach Hoang Van Phuc… fall into a state of anxiety. This stemmed from the fact that, on both previous occasions, after receiving encouragement from the VFF President, Mr. Phuc’s two predecessors… lost their positions.

First is with coach Falko Goetz. Mr. Hy once rated the German coach as the most qualified foreign coach to ever come to Vietnam, and spoke up to defend him after the defeat of U23 Vietnam at the 26th SEA Games (Indonesia). However, Mr. Goetz still had to pack up and return home.

Mr. Goetz left, and Coach Phan Thanh Hung took over, becoming the first domestic coach to lead the Vietnam national team after a long period of being given to foreign coaches. But just as quickly as his predecessor, Mr. Hung received the decision to "resign" just one week after returning from the AFF Cup 2012, a tournament in which the Vietnam national team was eliminated from the group stage.

Previously, VFF leaders, including President Nguyen Trong Hy, also spoke out several times to affirm that they still had faith in Coach Phan. Mr. Hung, on the day he proposed to resign, still proposed a series of solutions to improve the strength of the Vietnam National Team.

However, according to TT&VH's research, coach Hoang Van Phuc is less likely to be "backtracked" like his two previous coaches in the Vietnam National Team. The problem does not stem from expertise, because from this perspective, coach Hoang Van Phuc is even rated lower than both Mr. Goetz and coach Phan Thanh Hung.

VFF Vice President Pham Ngoc Vien said yesterday that the VFF Standing Committee has not yet scheduled a specific meeting to discuss the issue of coach Hoang Van Phuc and the position of Vietnam national team. Mr. Vien reaffirmed President Nguyen Trong Hy's view that he will sign a long-term contract with coach Hoang Van Phuc.

“Basically, VFF’s policy has not changed, and this has been said by Mr. Hy (Chairman Nguyen Trong Hy-PV). The VFF Standing Committee has not yet scheduled a specific meeting to make another decision,” said Mr. Vien. In fact, the VFF leadership is not completely unified in opinion.

Specifically, according to another leader of VFF, if necessary, VFF can still find another coach with good professional qualifications, capable of taking on the job of the Vietnam National Team, at least compared to his domestic colleagues. However, he said that he would follow the collective opinion, keeping Mr. Phuc for the 27th SEA Games in Myanmar.

Coach Hoang Van Phuc's advantage, as many opinions have pointed out, is that other "heavier" candidates such as Nguyen Huu Thang (SLNA), Nguyen Van Sy (V.Ninh Binh) or Le Huynh Duc (SHB.DN) all refused the VFF's offer.

Another reason is somewhat more important, considering the current situation, due to the 7th Congress, which is predicted to have many unpredictable developments, VFF leaders seem to no longer have enough time to fully focus on selecting the head coach of the Vietnam National Team.

With limited time from now until the 27th SEA Games, removing Mr. Phuc also means that VFF must restart the process of selecting a new candidate from the beginning. It is not surprising that after discussion, most of the VFF leaders "pushed" the issue to President Nguyen Trong Hy, who was just waiting for the 7th Congress to take place to officially rest.

The selection of a head coach for the Vietnam national team, which is always extremely hot, suddenly became cold.

According to Thethaovanhoa - DT