Quang Hai could not break the mess

ĐT Việt Nam 2-3 ĐT Iraq: Quang Hải không phá nổi mớ bòng bong

Vietnam lost 2-3 to Iraq in the final seconds. (Photo: WS)

“Waiting for the Vietnamese team to reveal mistakes to correct them” – That was the outstanding statement of coach Philippe Troussier before the FIFA Days match series in October 2023, when preparing for friendly matches with the Chinese team, Uzbekistan team, and the Korean team.

Since then, errors have become a thread running through the performances of the Vietnam national team. Coach Philippe Troussier and his team have lost 8 matches and only won 1, received 21 goals, received 4 red cards, and scored 7 goals. Errors appear in every match.

At the 2023 Asian Cup alone, the Vietnamese national team lost all 3 group stage matches, received 8 goals, 2 red cards, and scored 7 goals.

Following the mistakes in friendly matches and the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, Nguyen Filip missed the ball against the Japanese team, Nguyen Thanh Binh caused a penalty and Le Pham Thanh Long received a red card against the Indonesian team.

The series of errors of the Vietnam national team reached its peak in the match against the Iraq national team.

Van Khang was disqualified from the match after receiving two unnecessary yellow cards. (Photo: WS)

Facing the opponent's "team B" who had already secured their place in the next round as group leaders, the Vietnamese team created a tense match and scored with their first shot on target. Bui Hoang Viet Anh scored a goal against Iraq after Khuat Van Khang's free kick in the 42nd minute.

However, Khuat Van Khang unexpectedly received a second yellow card after a foul in the 45+2 minute, leaving Vietnam with only 10 players on the field. Before that, Khuat Van Khang received his first yellow card for diving in the 6th minute and being offside, causing Vietnam to lose a goal in the 18th minute.

With one less player, the Vietnamese team struggled to endure the match when the Iraqi team sent their main players onto the field in the second half. Rebin Sulaka (47') and Aymen Hussein (73') took turns heading the ball into Nguyen Filip's net.

After working at full capacity, Bui Hoang Viet Anh caused a penalty in the 81st minute, but Aymen Hussein's shot hit the post.

Having escaped a clear defeat, the Vietnamese team thought they would cause a surprise and return home with their heads held high when Quang Hai equalized 2-2 in the 90+1 minute.

Quang Hai scored an emotional goal against the Iraq team. (Photo: WS)

A goal that evokes hope to soothe a forgettable tournament and brings back sweet memories, as Facebook is constantly mentioning the miracle of Changzhou in the On this day section.

Quang Hai scored while being flanked by familiar faces of the previous Vietnam national team including Nguyen Van Toan, Do Hung Dung, Do Duy Manh, Vu Van Thanh and two pillars who won the SEA Games 31 gold medal, Bui Hoang Viet Anh and Nguyen Thanh Binh. In addition, “spirit” and “effort” became more prominent than “tactics” or “philosophy”.

However, when the old values of the Vietnam national team were about to bring home 1 point, the problem of making mistakes became painful at the last second.

Vo Minh Trong caused a penalty kick, Aymen Hussein successfully executed it, Vietnam lost 2-3 bitterly.

The habit of making mistakes by individuals over time shows the unstable playing style of the Vietnam national team. Coach Philippe Troussier has "made his wish come true" when he expects the Vietnam national team to reveal mistakes, but it is not known when he will fix the problems and create a complete playing style.