It's time for the Vietnamese team to make drastic changes in personnel and tactics.

The two narrow victories of the Vietnamese team against Nepal have put coach Kim Sang Sik under a lot of pressure from public opinion. Obviously, the Korean coach needs to make strong adjustments in both personnel and tactics to breathe new life into the Vietnamese team.

Coach Kim Sang-sik directs his players during the match between Vietnam and Nepal in the Asian Cup qualifiers. (Photo: Thanh Vu)

War won but still had too many problems

Coach Kim Sang Sik has achieved the goal of helping the Vietnamese team win all 6 points against Nepal, thereby continuing to maintain the race with Malaysia on the rankings. However, the performance of the "Golden Star Warriors" has not yet satisfied the expectations of fans. Many opinions said that the team's playing style is disjointed, lacking in innovation, and called on the Korean coach to boldly change both tactics and personnel to bring a fresh look to the Vietnamese team.

In the first leg against Nepal, coach Kim Sang Sik disappointed fans by not giving any players under 23 years old a chance, even though the October call-up list included 7 young faces promoted from the Vietnam U23 team, names that were expected to bring a breath of fresh air to the team. Instead, he still put his faith in a number of veterans who were past their prime and could no longer maintain a stable performance. It was this conservatism and excessive caution that made the team's performance so difficult. It is worth mentioning that in this match, two veterans, Van Lam and Duy Manh, the most experienced players on the team, made serious mistakes that almost cost the Vietnamese team dearly.

However, the Vietnamese team still ended the first leg with a clear victory over Nepal. Five days later, in the rematch at Thong Nhat Stadium, coach Kim Sang Sik learned his lesson from the previous match and boldly gave three U23 players, including goalkeeper Tran Trung Kien, center-back Nguyen Hieu Minh and striker Nguyen Thanh Nhan, a chance. As a result, Trung Kien played solidly and completed his task well; Hieu Minh directly contributed to the team's goal; and Thanh Nhan created fast and unpredictable moves on the right wing.

After being put on the field, the young players of the Vietnamese team showed the difference and put pressure on the team, leading to a goal in the second leg against Nepal.

However, overall, the Vietnamese team's performance still lacked improvement, even duller than in the first leg at Go Dau Stadium. Although we can sympathize with the unfavorable playing conditions due to slippery pitch and wet ball, what disappointed fans was that Duy Manh and his teammates were pressured by Nepal in some moments of the second half. If the South Asian team had taken better advantage of the opportunities they had, Vietnam could have had to share points right in front of nearly 20,000 fans at Thong Nhat Stadium.

Obviously, the Vietnamese team's playing style still has many problems that coach Kim needs to quickly overcome. In addition, his substitution decisions have not brought about the expected results. In fact, according to expert Phan Anh Tu, the Korean coach's substitution plans sometimes have the opposite effect, making the team's game more confusing and disjointed.

"I think the substitutions in the second half were not good. The attacks were very disjointed because the striker pairs were not in harmony, they had almost never played together. When playing together in attack, the players need to understand each other and create harmony. In the first half, the Vietnamese team controlled the game well, but in the second half they played below their best.

In the second half, the opponent completely dominated the game, playing well even though their players were not as good as the Vietnamese players. Instead of controlling the game better, the Vietnamese team chose to defend. After that, the team switched to counter-attacking but it was not effective. I think Mr. Kim's substitution was not good. The attacks were very disjointed because the striker pairs were not in harmony, and had almost never played together."

Perhaps, coach Kim Sang Sik needs to quickly adjust the way the Vietnamese team plays to create more balance and efficiency. Although he is facing a lot of criticism from fans, we still need to give him some sympathy, because his working time is too short for him to balance between the young players with potential and the experienced veterans.

Vietnam's striker Tien Linh in the second leg against Nepal in the final qualifying round of the 2027 Asian Cup.

We need to boldly create conditions for the young generation.

Next November, the Vietnamese team will enter the final training session of 2025 to prepare for the return match against Laos in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers. Facing an opponent that is rated lower, coach Kim Sang Sik will have an ideal opportunity to conduct a squad test, giving young players a chance to help them gain international competition experience and get acquainted with the team's playing philosophy. According to the latest information, coach Ha Hyeok Yun of the Lao team said he plans to call up the U22 squad to face Vietnam in Vientiane. This opens up more opportunities for coach Kim to boldly experiment, aiming to rejuvenate and re-energize the "Golden Star Warriors" in the new period.

Image of the Vietnamese team celebrating victory after the match against Nepal on the evening of October 14 in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers. (Photo: VFF)

“In the return match against Vietnam at the 2027 Asian Cup at home, we will use many players from the U22 team to prepare for the SEA Games. We are a team with nothing to lose. Laos is considered the weakest in the group, but that does not mean that the opponents can easily overcome us. On the contrary, the Vietnamese team and the Malaysian team are the teams that should be more worried,” the captain of the Laos team shared.

With the Laos team expected to use the U22 squad, this will be a good opportunity for coach Kim Sang Sik to boldly "change blood", rejuvenate the force and test new elements for the Vietnam team during the FIFA Days this November. In addition, the 47-year-old coach also needs to create a breakthrough in the way of playing, aiming for a team rich in creativity and bringing many emotions to the fans.

In November, U23 Vietnam will also have a training trip to China, participating in an international friendly tournament with quality opponents. At the U23 team, assistant Dinh Hong Vinh will take on the role of temporary head coach, while Mr. Kim will continue to lead the national team to compete in the Asian Cup qualifiers. Most likely, young pillars such as Dinh Bac, Van Khang, Trung Kien, Hieu Minh, Phi Hoang or Thanh Nhan will continue to be called up to the national team, both to accumulate experience and to create more depth for the force.

At the same time, Mr. Dinh Hong Vinh will have an important opportunity to screen and discover more potential faces for U23 Vietnam, preparing for the 33rd SEA Games and the 2026 U23 Asian Finals, pivotal playgrounds in the process of inheriting and developing the next generation of Vietnamese football.

Vu Dinh Phong

Source: https://nhandan.vn/da-den-luc-doi-tuyen-viet-nam-can-nhung-thay-doi-manh-me-ve-nhan-su-va-chien-thuat-post917011.html