Is Quang Hai's absence still serious for the Vietnamese team?

Quang Hai is a classy midfielder and star of the Vietnam national team, but missing him at this time is not a serious problem for coach Kim Sang Sik.

Quang Hai is showing signs of being overloaded due to working too hard at the Hanoi Police Club - Photo: NGOC LE

Nguyen Quang Hai has just withdrawn from the Vietnam national team to take time to fully recover. He has recently suffered a minor shoulder injury, so he will not be able to perform his duties at the FIFA Days in October, where the team will play two matches against Nepal in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers.

Regarding Quang Hai's absence

This is the second consecutive training session that Quang Hai has asked not to join the national team. The previous time was during the FIFA Days in September, when the team did not have any official matches. Quang Hai's absence when the Vietnamese team played 2 matches against Nepal may make fans regretful.

That is because at the Hanoi Police Club, Quang Hai is in very good form in the early stages of the 2025 - 2026 season. He is a regular starter and captain, rarely absent when the team participates in many arenas. In the V-League arena alone, Hai started 5 matches, scored 2 goals, made 3 assists to help the team rank second in the rankings after 5 unbeaten matches.

Because of being a starter and constantly "working hard" in V-League, C2 Asian Cup and Southeast Asian Cup, Quang Hai was overloaded. A minor shoulder injury caused the player to miss two matches against Beijing Guoan and Cebu FC. When he returned to play against Nam Dinh and Tai Po, Hai's injury relapsed so he did not want to risk being called up to the national team.

Therefore, when his name was on the national team's training list, Quang Hai withdrew to take time to fully recover during the FIFA Days break.

In fact, the absence of Quang Hai does not pose any serious difficulties for the Vietnamese team. Coach Kim Sang Sik did not even call up additional personnel, because he believed that the remaining 23 players could do well in the upcoming 2 matches against Nepal. These are still 2 important matches for the team in the goal of winning a ticket to the continental finals.

Coach Kim Sang Sik will have the opportunity to test his personnel in the context of Quang Hai's absence - Photo: NGOC LE

The problem for coach Kim Sang Sik

Under coach Kim Sang Sik, Quang Hai is no longer an irreplaceable player. He still participates in important tournaments with the team, such as the ASEAN Cup 2024 and the first leg of the third qualifying round of the Asian Cup 2027, but is no longer a regular starter.

On the journey to the Vietnam team's most recent Southeast Asian championship, Quang Hai only started 2 matches, came on the bench 3 times and was substituted 3 times. In the last 2 matches in the Asian Cup qualifiers, Hai only played a total of 62 minutes. Those numbers show that under coach Kim, Quang Hai is just a personnel option, no longer the "untouchable" character like in the past.

The positions Quang Hai can play under Mr. Kim are all available for replacement. In midfield, the Vietnamese team still has Hoang Duc, Duc Chien, Thanh Long, and young player Xuan Bac also has a chance to compete.

In the position of attacking midfielder, winger or attacking midfielder, Hai Long, Van Khang, Tuan Hai, Thanh Nhan and Dinh Bac are always ready. Hai Long personally performed very well in the position that used to be Quang Hai's forte at the recent ASEAN Cup.

After returning from his trip to France, Quang Hai changed his playing style. Most clearly, at the club, Hai is no longer a player who attacks high up the pitch, but instead, he plays deep to participate in regulating the match. This is also the reason that affects his chances in the Vietnam national team, because Mr. Kim needs more than a small player in the middle of the field.

Talking to Tuoi Tre Online , commentator Le Quang Long (Long "thoi"), former captain of Vietnam U18 team, said: "Quang Hai's absence in the two matches against Nepal is a bit of a pity because he is a creative player and is in very good form.

However, coach Kim Sang Sik still has quality players like Hoang Duc. Moreover, this is also an opportunity for him to test new elements."

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NGOC LE

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/vang-quang-hai-co-con-nghiem-trong-voi-doi-tuyen-viet-nam-20251004175338743.htm