Time to "test the fire" of the rookie!

The Vietnamese team still has many things to overcome even though it has achieved its goal of winning when hosting Nepal in the third match of Group F of the final qualifying round of the 2027 Asian Cup on October 9.

Veterans lose form

Coach Kim Sang-sik fielded a starting lineup with veteran players with rich international experience. The perfect framework helped the home team quickly gain the upper hand, overwhelming the Nepalese players. However, despite having the advantage of playing with one more player from the end of the first half, the Vietnamese team could only score the "killing" goal thanks to personnel changes in the second half.

The home team quickly caught the ball and opened the scoring in the 9th minute thanks to the sharpness of striker Nguyen Tien Linh. However, instead of continuing to create an attacking game with high pressing, coach Kim Sang-sik's students proactively slowed down the pace of the match.

Nepal is considered the "underdog" team in Group F after two easy defeats against Malaysia and Laos. The poor quality of the squad and the lack of outstanding players forced Nepal to huddle together in defense when facing the Vietnamese team. This also increased the subjectivity of the Vietnamese players and caused coach Kim Sang-sik's team to be tied 1-1 after an "air battle" in the 17th minute.

Đến lúc — The Vietnamese team (left) needs to boldly renew its lineup to compete more effectively. Photo: QUOC AN

The central defender duo Duy Manh and Tien Dung are rich in courage and combat experience. However, at an age where they cannot maintain a stable peak performance, these two veteran players have become slow in judging situations, actively marking people or covering each other closely. This caused goalkeeper Van Lam to have to pick the ball out of the net when he returned to the national team after more than a year of losing his place.

The increase in youth and enthusiasm in the second half helped the home team play more smoothly and improve. Thereby, Xuan Manh and Van Vi scored in turn to bring victory to the Vietnamese team, rekindling the hope of advancing deep into the 2027 Asian Cup.

Boldly renew the lineup

Facing an opponent ranked 62 places lower in the FIFA rankings, the Vietnamese team still struggled to develop their game and find goals. Hoang Duc and Tien Linh continued to play the main role of the Vietnamese team, but this striker duo received little support from their teammates.

In fact, all three goals against Nepal were scored by Hoang Duc and Tien Linh. However, the lack of tight formation was the reason why Kim Sang-sik's players made ineffective decisions. Statistics for the entire match showed that Vietnam had 24 shots but only scored 3 goals, 2 of which were scored when Nepal was still playing with 10 players on the field.

After the "new recruits" Van Vi, Thanh Nhan, Dinh Bac and Gia Hung were put on the field, the central and overlapping attacks of the Vietnamese team gradually became sharper. The mobility of the young talents continuously stirred up the Nepalese defense, causing the opponent to lose physical strength, leading to carelessness in defense.

"The players need to know how to seize opportunities and focus more on defense. The Vietnamese team will try to practice better to overcome these shortcomings" - Coach Kim Sang-sik commented after the victory over Nepal.

Coach Kim Sang-sik must have evaluated the ability of each player and learned from his experience in using players after the match against Nepal. In the rematch against this opponent at Thong Nhat Stadium (HCMC) on October 14, the Korean strategist needs to boldly experiment with more young players, including goalkeepers Trung Kien, Van Viet, defenders Nhat Minh, Hieu Minh, Phi Hoang or midfielders Xuan Bac, Van Khang...

After 3 matches in Group F, Vietnam has 6 points, temporarily ranked second in the group and 3 points behind Malaysia. At the end of the final qualifying round, the top team in Group F will take a place in the final round of the Asian Cup 2027.