VPF still proposes to postpone V-League 2021 to February 2022; U23 Vietnam's draw may change
(Baonghean.vn) - Despite the opposition of most clubs, VPF still proposed to postpone V-League 2021 to February 2022; Asian Football Confederation (AFC) will draw lots and reschedule some groups in the 2022 AFC U23 qualifiers, due to North Korea's withdrawal from the tournament.
VPF still proposes to postpone V-League 2021
On July 30, Vietnam Professional Football Joint Stock Company (VPF) said that it had sent a document to the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) about the plan to organize the 2021 Professional Football Tournament. VPF reserved the proposal to postpone the 2021 V-League to February 2022.
VPF Company proposed to VFF to continue organizing the Vietnam Professional Football Tournament 2021. The plan submitted by VPF to VFF at this time has not changed compared to the plan submitted to VFF and the VPF Board of Directors since July 16.
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| V-League 2021 may be postponed until February 2022 due to the Covid-19 pandemic and to allow time for the national team to perform international duties. Photo: NHU DAT |
Specifically, VPF proposed: The National First Division will compete on November 20, 2021 and end on January 14, 2022; V-League will compete on February 12, 2022 with make-up matches of round 13, from February 16, 2022 to March 12, 2022, there will be group competitions and the tournament will end; The National Cup will compete from January 17, 2022 and end on March 18, 2022.
The clubs requested that the V-League start early, some clubs even requested that the V-League start right during the national team's training period, instead of alternating between the periods when the national team is not competing. VPF said that most of the clubs agreed to continue organizing the 2021 season. Therefore, VPF has officially asked for the opinion of VFF on the time plan to organize the tournament as above. After receiving the decision from VFF, VPF said that it will proceed with the implementation of the work.
U23 Vietnam's draw may change
North Korea did not participate in the 2022 AFC U23 Championship qualifiers due to Covid-19 concerns. Therefore, Group K has only two teams: Japan and Cambodia. Based on the tournament regulations, the AFC will draw lots to take one team from the remaining four groups of the East Asia region, including G, H, I or J, to move to Group K.
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| Vietnam was the runner-up of the 2018 AFC U23 Championship, but was eliminated in the group stage in 2020. Photo: Lam Thoa. |
Vietnam is in the top seed group so it is not on the list that can be transferred. Similarly, the host teams of the groups will not have to move to Group K to avoid affecting the organization. The eight teams that will have to participate in the draw on August 11 are China and Brunei (Group G), Timor Leste and the Philippines (Group H), Myanmar and Hong Kong (Group I), Malaysia and Laos (Group J).
To prepare for the tournament, Coach Park Hang-seo has called up 30 players, who will start training from August 10 in Hanoi. The commanding authority is given to assistant Kim Han-yoo, because at the same time, the Korean coach has to work with the national team to prepare for the third qualifying round of the 2022 World Cup - Asia region.
The 2022 AFC U23 Championship qualifiers take place from October 23 to October 31. The teams will compete in a round-robin format, selecting 11 group winners and 4 second-placed teams with good results to qualify for the final round held in Uzbekistan from June 1, 2022 to June 19, 2022.
Italy team captain escapes unemployment
Marca quoted Giorgio Chiellini as saying: "I will return to Turin, coach Massimiliano Allegri is waiting for me there. I will try to end my career by winning more titles. That is the way to help me desire to compete at the top level."
The 36-year-old centre-back is ready to sign a new contract with Juventus. He is currently a free agent. Chiellini's contract with the "Old Lady" expires on June 30.
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| Chiellini will continue to stay with Juventus in the new season. Photo: Getty Images. |
According to Calcio Mercato, Chiellini is about to sign a 1-year contract with Juventus. Due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, the central defender will share the burden with the team by reducing his salary. This deal is likely to be approved next Monday (August 2).
Chiellini has played for Juventus for 16 consecutive seasons. In the 2019/20 season, the captain of the Italian national team suffered a torn knee ligament, facing the risk of retirement. However, Chiellini came back strong to continue playing for Juventus and with the "Azzurri" to attend Euro 2020.Chiellini did not come to Euro 2020 just to hang out. The veteran centre-back played brilliantly. With his experience and intelligence, he and Leonardo Bonucci became the number one central defender pair to help the team win the championship.
At the club, in more than 500 matches played, Chiellini has won 9 Serie A titles, 5 Coppa Italia and 5 Italian Super Cups. However, the Champions League is still the missing title in this player's collection.
