Vietnam's new defense: Taller and more classy

The defensive revolution will help coach Kim Sang-sik build a more confident and solid Vietnam team.

Vietnam national team welcomes new generation of central defenders

Despite two unconvincing matches against Nepal (winning 3-1 and 1-0) in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers, there are still positive signs from the Vietnamese team.

The transfer of forces has begun, although it is still in its infancy, but it is the first step on the journey to transform the national team of coach Kim Sang-sik.

In the return match against Nepal, Mr. Kim trusted Hieu Minh in defense. In response, the 2004-born center-back had a solid defensive match, intercepted well, and made no mistakes. He also headed the ball into an own net, causing the opponent to fumble and score the only goal for Vietnam.

Hieu Minh (number 4) and Nhat Minh (number 16) were called up to the Vietnam national team.

PHOTO: MINH TU

In fact, the opportunity came to Hieu Minh partly because the mainstay center-back Tien Dung suffered a back injury. However, even if Tien Dung was healthy, Mr. Kim would likely still put his trust in Hieu Minh. The Korean coach affirmed to Thanh Nien Newspaper : "Some faces of U.23 Vietnam are completely capable of playing for the team. The problem is just choosing the right time to trust them."

With Hieu Minh's successful debut, coach Kim Sang-sik has more faith in the young central defenders to reform the defense, which has been the least volatile position of the Vietnamese team in the past 7 years.

"Guards" like Duy Manh, Tien Dung, Xuan Manh have grown up since the magical spring in Changzhou in 2018, when U.23 Vietnam won the historic silver medal at the Asian tournament. Duy Manh and Tien Dung then became important pieces in coach Park Hang-seo's defense for 5 years (2018 - 2022), with only Xuan Manh playing less.

After coach Philippe Troussier reformed the defense with Tuan Tai and Viet Anh and left early after an unsuccessful year, coach Kim Sang-sik came in, using back the pillars of coach Park's time to "nail" the defense.

The 2024 AFF Cup championship shows that experienced central defenders like Duy Manh and Tien Dung still have value because of their class, prestige and understanding of the organizational culture of the Vietnamese team.

However, to consider further goals (Asian Cup 2027, World Cup 2030 qualifiers), when the current key central defenders will be 2 or 3 years older, it is clear that coach Kim Sang-sik cannot just fix those choices.

Hieu Minh (left) is ready to succeed his senior

PHOTO: INDEPENDENCE

The Vietnam national team needs a coherent continuity between generations. After the 1999 and 2000 generations (with Viet Anh and Thanh Binh) were selected for the national team and did not leave much of an impression, coach Kim Sang-sik is now looking to the 2003 and 2004 generations, where Ly Duc, Hieu Minh, Nhat Minh and Phi Hoang are all playing for the U.23 team and have 2 youth tournaments to improve their level.

Ly Duc played against Malaysia, Hieu Minh started against Nepal... in the Asian Cup qualifiers. That is the commitment to put faith in young players of Coach Kim. The young defenders will continue to have opportunities in the next year, if they prove their worth in the SEA Games or the U.23 Asian Cup. The wheel of change has started to roll from now.

Waiting for foreign blood

The Vietnam national team will welcome foreign-blooded central defenders in 2026. The profile of central defender Gustavo Sant Ana (Da Nang Club) is being reviewed, after the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism proposed it to the Ministry of Justice .

Gustavo is 30 years old, 1.95 m tall. He has accumulated 5 years of playing in V-League, having played for The Cong Viettel , SLNA, Thanh Hoa and currently Da Nang. Gustavo has good physique, ability to stick and compete.

The nearly 2 meter tall player will bring a solution to the defense that has long been shaken by high balls, as Vietnamese central defenders are only of average height.

Mr. Kim may consider using Gustavo...

PHOTO: DA NANG CLUB

... and Kevin Pham Ba

PHOTO: NAM DINH CLUB

Besides Gustavo, there are also overseas Vietnamese central defenders such as Kevin Pham Ba ( Nam Dinh ), Adou Minh (Hanoi Police Club) waiting in line. Kevin Pham Ba (born in 1994) has been involved in French football, possessing extensive experience playing football in Europe. Also playing in France, Adou Minh (born in 1997) was even more impressive when he entered the V-League's typical squad last season, after a classy performance that helped the humble Ha Tinh team go unbeaten in the first leg.

The Vietnamese national team's goalkeeping team also promises to have foreign blood, as overseas Vietnamese goalkeeper Patrik Le Giang is a potential name possessing Vietnamese nationality.

Patrik Le Giang has been the best goalkeeper in V-League for the past 2 years. He has shown enough performance for coach Kim to consider him as the main goalkeeper when qualified.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/hang-thu-moi-cua-doi-tuyen-viet-nam-cao-lon-va-dang-cap-hon-185251023161222513.htm