The 'headhunting' campaign is still very dramatic, coach Kim Sang-sik should not waste talent.

Dinh Trong is reviving

The fact that Binh Dinh still has a chance to compete for the 2023-2024 V-League championship is a big surprise. The team from the land of martial arts has 43 points, 4 points behind the top team Nam Dinh , while the tournament has 2 more rounds to end. It may be difficult for Binh Dinh to catch up with the team from Thanh Nam in the coming days, but the fact that Binh Dinh has clung to the top spot until now is the utmost effort of the team under coach Bui Doan Quang Huy.

In the efforts to keep up with Binh Dinh, the role of the defense of the martial arts team is very important. After round 24, Binh Dinh has conceded 26 goals, one of the three teams that have conceded the fewest goals in the V-League this season (the other two teams are Ho Chi Minh City Club and Viettel ). The number of goals conceded by Binh Dinh is much lower than the number of goals conceded by the top team Nam Dinh (36 goals conceded). The person who contributed greatly to the solid defense of Binh Dinh, helping the entire Binh Dinh team climb so high on the rankings, is central defender Tran Dinh Trong. This central defender has almost regained his familiar image, when he played extremely well at the U.23 Asian Cup in 2017 and the AFF Cup 2018.

Dinh Trong plays well, helping Binh Dinh Club fly high

At his best physical condition, Dinh Trong is still the leading central defender in Vietnamese football in terms of situation reading and ball recovery techniques. Thanks to his ability to read situations well and predict opponents one step ahead, Dinh Trong's interventions at first glance seem very simple and easy, but in reality, not every defender can do it. The ability to cover for teammates is also another strength of Tran Dinh Trong, helping him always appear in time when a teammate is passed.

Therefore, Dinh Trong deserves to be given a chance in the Vietnam national team in the upcoming training sessions. The above mentioned advantages of Dinh Trong will be a necessary addition to the muscular strength of the strong-playing central defenders such as Duc Chien, Thanh Binh, Duy Manh.

Patrik Le Giang is eager to contribute

Also leading in terms of defense solidity, also conceding the fewest goals in V-League 2023-2024 like Binh Dinh is Ho Chi Minh City Club. Even the fact that Ho Chi Minh City Club has only conceded 26 goals this season is even more surprising when looking at the names in the defense that Coach Phung Thanh Phuong's team has. Unlike the teams with the same 26 goals conceded, including Viettel and Binh Dinh, Ho Chi Minh City Club's defense has no stars.

The Cong Viettel owns Bui Tien Dung, Thanh Binh, Duc Chien, Phan Tuan Tai, who are national team defenders. Binh Dinh has Dinh Trong, Adriano Schmidt, former national team players, plus goalkeeper Dang Van Lam currently playing for the national team. On the contrary, the entire defense system of Ho Chi Minh City Club consists of relatively unknown players. However, Ho Chi Minh City Club still protects the goal very well, thanks to the excellence of goalkeeper Patrik Le Giang. In almost every match from the end of V-League 2023 to this point of V-League 2023-2024, Patrik Le Giang has made spectacular saves for Ho Chi Minh City Club.

Patrik Le Giang had a memorable season playing for Ho Chi Minh City Club

Compared to Dang Van Lam, Patrik Le Giang is more comprehensive, thanks to his ability to catch high balls and play with his feet better. Compared to Nguyen Filip, the goalkeeper of Ho Chi Minh City Club has more stable performance. Patrik Le Giang's physique is also ideal (1.89 m tall), enough to make the opponent's attacking players wary when facing him.

The disadvantage for Patrik Le Giang is that he has not yet completed his naturalization as a Vietnamese citizen. However, there is still a lot of time between now and the AFF Cup 2024 (from November) and the Asian Cup 2027 qualifiers (from March 2025), and things can still change. If Patrik Le Giang is able to obtain Vietnamese citizenship before the above international tournaments, he deserves to compete for an official position in the national team's goal with two famous colleagues Nguyen Filip and Dang Van Lam.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/cong-cuoc-san-dau-nguoi-con-rat-kich-tinh-hlv-kim-sang-sik-dung-bo-phi-nhan-tai-185240621142204695.htm