Coach Kim Sang-sik must find new recruits for the Vietnam team.

T QUIET PILLAR

V-League 2024 – 2025 has gone through 3 rounds, with a huge surprise when the two leading teams were named HAGL and Ha Tinh. These are the teams that had to compete for relegation last season. Meanwhile, clubs with many national players such as Hanoi, Hanoi Police (CAHN), Nam Dinh or The Cong Viettel are not yet "in form".

The inconsistent results of strong teams also reflect the performance of the key players of the Vietnamese national team. Speaking of the attacking players, at CAHN Club, Quang Hai only played a moderate role with 1 assist after 3 matches, despite playing regularly since the beginning of the season. At The Cong Viettel , it seems that Hoang Duc's decision to leave in January 2025 is affecting the way the coaching staff uses this player. The midfielder born in 1998 did not play the full 90 minutes in the last 2 matches, playing poorly.

The Vietnamese team is preparing to play two important friendly matches.

Hung Dung (Hanoi FC), Van Duc (CAHN FC) or Van Toan, Tuan Anh (Nam Dinh) have not shown any remarkable results after the first 3 rounds. The only national player who has scored regularly is Tien Linh of Binh Duong FC with 3 goals. Although the number of goals is not the only measure of ability, it is clear that the contribution of many stars of the Vietnamese national team is no longer outstanding.

After 3 rounds, the 4 strongest teams in V-League (3 teams headquartered in Hanoi along with Nam Dinh Club) have only scored a total of 9 goals (an average of 2.25 goals/team). According to Coach Alexandre Polking of CAHN Club, V-League matches are very physical, many teams choose a tight and fierce defensive approach, making it difficult for teams that prefer an attacking style of play. However, the fact that midfielders and strikers are "unusually" quiet despite many years of experience shows many bad signs.

In defense, the defenders played steadily, partly because of the defensive approach of many V-League teams. The central defenders that Mr. Kim Sang-sik trusted, such as Que Ngoc Hai, Thanh Chung, Thanh Binh, still maintained their form, plus Viet Anh, who had just returned from injury, helped CAHN Club quench its thirst for victory in the V-League on the evening of September 30. There were some mistakes, such as Bui Tien Dung with his slip in the defeat of The Cong Viettel, or Giap Tuan Duong's dangerous tackle in CAHN Club's shirt. But overall, the defense of the Vietnamese team was still stable. The current shortcomings of the Vietnamese team are the midfield and attack, when the trust placed in the veterans of Mr. Kim Sang-sik has not been met.

WHERE TO FIND NEW WIND?

When calling up young players, Coach Kim Sang-sik prioritized the attack, with faith in Bui Vi Hao and Van Truong. The above mentioned way of using people also reflects the philosophy that the Korean coach wants to build.

The Vietnamese national team has a good defensive foundation that was laid under Park Hang-seo. The calculated counter-attacking tendency of the V-League has also helped Vietnamese football produce many good central defenders. Therefore, the revolution to change the playing style needs to focus on the midfield and forward lines.

However, when V-League teams still rely heavily on foreign players to deploy an attacking style of play, many domestic stars are hard to avoid being "left out". In the last 2 training sessions, coach Kim Sang-sik has promoted and relegated many names, but mainly called up old players. Therefore, the efficiency cannot be breakthrough, with only 2 goals in the last 3 matches.

In the October training session, coach Kim Sang-sik is likely to target players who are in good form in the V-League. With a convincing top position, HAGL can bring in Ngoc Quang, Thanh Binh, Minh Vuong. Thanh Hoa Club also played well enough for Mr. Kim to consider the case of Thai Son, a midfielder who was trusted by coach Philippe Troussier, along with central defender Thanh Long - a player who is impressing in the defense with his aggressive and decisive playing style. Some positions with excess personnel but lacking quality such as right and left wing-backs also need to add new faces.

As mentioned, the forward line, which is currently lacking in talent, also needs to expand its selection area to bring in newer players, creating competition to promote old factors. Of course, it is not easy for Mr. Kim to find new players if looking at the V-League. Teams that play well mainly rely on foreign players or collective play. Meanwhile, teams with many stars are unstable and unstable. Unless he determines the spirit of thorough experimentation, calling even unpopular players to evaluate their abilities like when Coach Troussier was in charge. Otherwise, Coach Kim Sang-sik will have a hard time finding talented people if he only selects new players based on performance criteria.

10 defeats in the last 12 matches show that the Vietnamese team has reached its limit. While the veterans are gradually losing motivation and are not physically fit, the young generation is very "green and immature". The Korean coach does not have many good players, but now is the time to "pave the sand for gold". The important thing is that the Vietnamese team needs to plan a specific playing philosophy, then find the right factors to assemble. After 5 months of observing Vietnamese football, it is time for Mr. Kim to find the optimal playing style with the players he has.

The two matches against India and Lebanon are the last chance for coach Kim Sang-sik to experiment for the AFF Cup 2024, so the coaching staff needs to call up many new faces, instead of being loyal to the old safety. But whether or not to choose the right "gem" depends on Mr. Kim's talent in judging people.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/hlv-kim-sang-sik-phai-tim-tan-binh-cho-doi-tuyen-viet-nam-185241001152802717.htm