Mr. Kim Sang-sik continuously receives bad news
On the evening of May 30, the Vietnam team announced the bad news when two central defenders in good form, Nguyen Thanh Binh (The Cong Viettel) and Bui Hoang Viet Anh (Hanoi Police) are both injured and cannot join the team.
Therefore, coach Kim Sang-sik had to call up 2 other players to replace him, center back Pham Ly Duc (Hoang Anh Gia Lai) and Dang Van Toi (Hai Phong).
In fact, what is beyond the Korean strategist's calculations is the task of building a defense for the Vietnamese team before the key match against Malaysia on June 10.
Both defenders who were urgently added by Mr. Kim are having their own problems. Ly Duc has only just returned from a knee injury not long ago. Therefore, Mr. Kim initially decided to let him practice with the U22 Vietnam team instead of joining the national team as in the last 2 gatherings.
Meanwhile, Dang Van Toi has never been a highly qualified choice, if compared to the current class of the Vietnam team as well as the importance of the confrontation with Malaysia.
The strength of the player born in 1999 is her versatility and a foundation of fitness. However, the disadvantage for Van Toi is that he does not have much experience playing at the national team level. This is also the reason why over the years, Dang Van Toi has rarely been named in the personnel plans of his predecessors such as Park Hang-seo, Philippe Troussier and Mr. Kim Sang-sik himself before.
Waiting for Cao Pendant Quang Vinh
In addition to the loss of two good central defenders, Bui Hoang Viet Anh and Nguyen Thanh Binh, operating the Vietnam national team's defense with Thanh Chung, Duy Manh and Tien Dung as well as at the 2024 ASEAN Cup also poses a challenge for Mr. Kim Sang-sik.
In the past 5 months, changes in the form and fitness of these 3 players have occurred in the domestic league. It is difficult to ensure that the veteran central defender trio can "play soft" against the strong naturalized strikers on the Malaysian side.
Coach Kim Sang-sik of course has to calculate the backup plan. And bringing Cao Pendant Quang Vinh to play as a left-sided centre-back is completely possible.
In addition to his strength as a left-back, Quang Vinh can also play well as a central defender. This has been partly shown by him in the Hanoi Police club jersey.
Feeling good space and a satisfying physical foundation are the plus points of the players with two French - Vietnamese blood lines. He can completely stick to and compete well with strong strikers on the opponent's side.
Not to mention, Cao pendent Quang Vinh is capable of supporting the attack with passes across the two edges. This is something he did very well when Hanoi Police competed in the Southeast Asian Cup C1.
In addition, bringing Quang Vinh to the center-back position will help coach Kim Sang-sik have more "land" to take advantage of the edge climbing ability from Van Vi. Currently, the left-back of Nam Dinh has also been in very good form in the V.League for the past 3 months.
According to the plan, from May 31, Cao Pendant Quang Vinh, Nguyen Filip, Quang Hai, Vo Hoang Minh Khoa, Nguyen Tien Linh will join the Vietnam national team. Compared to the other 4 teammates, this is the first time this defender has "eaten a team meal".
Expressing to the press, Cao Pendant Quang Vinh hopes to contribute to helping the Vietnamese team qualify for the 2027 Asian Cup. That will also be an affirmation for him - one of the few highest-class overseas Vietnamese players that Vietnamese football possesses.
