(PLO) – Injured captain Son Heung-min did not play in the 4-0 win over Tunisia while strikers Tien Linh and Quang Hai definitely did not play against host Korea on the night of October 17.
The Vietnamese team (VN) showed different faces in two defeats to China and Uzbekistan, both with a score of 0-2. The final match of the FIFA Days tour is a last chance for the players to score points in the eyes of teacher Troussier with the desire to stay on the final list for the World Cup qualifiers in November 2023 and the Asian Cup in January. 2024.
Mr. Troussier does not need a striker sao
Coach Philippe Troussier’s students, after winning three matches against Syria, Hong Kong, and Palestine, scored four goals and did not concede. In particular, two friendly matches in China were lost 0-2 to the host and the FIFA non-scoring practice match continued to lose to Uzbekistan by two goals without reply.
Notably, under the French coach, strikers who were in the priority group such as Cong Phuong, Van Quyet, and Tien Linh were not the number 1 choice. Coach Troussier even eliminated Van Quyet and Cong Phuong in training. This midfielder did not allow Tien Linh to play in the first three friendly matches, but used Hoang Duc as a striker.
Unfortunately for Tien Linh, when he rarely appeared on the field in the 80th minute of the match against China on the night of October 10, just 7 minutes later, he impatiently jerked his elbow in the opponent’s face, causing him to receive a red card.
Because the practice match with Uzbekistan did not count FIFA points, striker Tien Linh had the second half of the second half on the field. But in the last friendly match as a guest in Korea, Tien Linh could not participate because of his previous red card.
A slight disadvantage for the Vietnamese team is that midfielder Quang Hai was injured after playing more than 10 minutes in the match against Uzbekistan. X-ray results showed that Quang Hai had a torn muscle and had to rest for at least a month.
As a guest against host Korea, ranked 26th in the world, coach Troussier and his team, ranked 95th on the FIFA rankings, have many losses, but the important thing is how to play and what to learn against a big opponent they have defeated. German team in the World Cup. Even the French teacher predicted that his students could only hold the ball about 30%-35% in this difficult match and asked them to tighten their defensive discipline to avoid losing heavily.
Star Son Heung-min left the possibility of playing
In the 4-0 win over the away team, Tunisia, ranked 29th in the world, star player Son Heung-min sat quietly on the bench for 90 minutes. Tottenham’s captain, who just won the Premier League’s September best award, has a groin injury and may not play or only play the second half of the match against Vietnam on the night of October 17. Five years ago, Son and his teammates won the Vietnamese Olympic team in the semi-finals and then were crowned ASIAD 18.
In the victory over Tunisia on the night of October 13, midfielder Lee Kang-in scored a double at Seoul World Cup Stadium amid rapturous applause from the crowd of 59,000 spectators. After a scoreless first half, Lee emerged as a hero, before Tunisian defender Yassine Meriah scored an own goal and Sub Hwang Ui-jo sealed the score 4-0 for South Korea in stoppage time.
Notably, Korea has never scored more than two goals in six previous matches under coach Jurgen Klinsmann. The German teacher is very eager to prolong the strong victory for his students in the next match against weaker opponents Vietnam at 8 pm October 17 at Suwon World Cup Stadium.
Similar to coach Troussier and his team needing to test the squad for major campaigns, coach Klinsmann sees the two friendly matches as an opportunity to practice quality to perfect the playing style and personnel for matches in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers from May. 11, Korea especially attaches great importance to the goal of winning the Asian Cup in early 2024 in Qatar – a title that has eluded them for the past 63 years.
Learn from big opponents
The Vietnamese team has two training sessions on the nights of October 15 and 16 to prepare for the final friendly match on the occasion of FIFA Days in October. Surely coach Troussier will field the strongest squad among the 28 players he currently owns. . Complying with the game, maintaining posture and trying to score a goal against Korea is the highest goal of coach Troussier and his team. Midfielder Do Hung Dung shared: “This is a rare opportunity for the Vietnamese team to face a high-class team that has participated in many World Cups. I think this is an extremely difficult match but it is an opportunity for the players to gain experience. I believe we will learn many things from this match.” TT
DANG HUY – JAPANESE BROTHER
