Vietnam team enters a new phase
More than 2 months after winning the 2024 ASEAN Cup, coach Kim Sang Sik and the Vietnam National Team entered a new round of qualifying for the third qualifying round of the 2027 Asian Cup. To prepare for this front, Quang Hai and his teammates will have an international friendly match with the Cambodian team.
A week before, Mr. Kim had called up 26 players. However, due to different problems, the Vietnam National Team's forces have been adjusted. Goalkeeper Nguyen Filip cannot join the team because of family reasons, Dinh Trieu has only returned to training in the last 2 sessions due to a back injury. Unexpectedly, coach Kim Sang-sik had to call up additional goalkeeper Trinh Xuan Hoang and promote Nguyen Trung Kien from the U22 team.
Not to mention, Bui Hoang Viet Anh was returned to the club after a relapse of a knee injury. Players including Tien Linh, Quang Hai and Hai Long have just joined the team in the last 2-3 training sessions. In addition, the Vietnam National Team was not necessarily without Xuan Son or Van Toan from the beginning, when they both had physical problems from the ASEAN Cup.
Obviously, the Korean strategist will have to adapt to the current situation that is not as expected. However, in a friendly match that "heated up" before welcoming Laos on March 25, Mr. Kim could be more comfortable in choosing a suitable B team based on the 3-4-3 main formation.
It would not be surprising if the faces that have not played before such as Van Khang, Thanh Binh, Bao Toan, Tien Anh, Tuan Hai or rookies Minh Khoa, Ly Duc... were given the opportunity to play. "The reborn is out of character", perhaps, this is also a good opportunity for coach Kim Sang-sik to evaluate the abilities of these factors.
Cambodia is a reasonable "blue team"
Many fans questioned why the Vietnam team played a friendly match with Cambodia. In fact, the team from the land of the pagodas is a "blue team" suitable for the current coach Kim Sang-sik and his team. They are currently not interested in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers as they have stopped early in the preliminary round. In terms of geography and level, Cambodia is similar or slightly stronger than Laos - Vietnam's opponent in the upcoming Asian Cup qualifiers.
The Cambodian team arrived in Vietnam on March 17. Compared to the 2024 ASEAN Cup, this team has some adjustments in terms of force. However, naturalized players such as Kanmo, Takaki Ose, Abdel Kader Coulibaly, Yudai Ogawa continue to be present in the key squad. Cambodia's most notable absentee this time is the Japanese-born central defender - Hikaru Mizuno.
In addition to the naturalized and " cross-educated" players, coach Gyotoku also called up veteran faces such as Chanthea, Sareth Krya, Sar Ratana... A noteworthy point is that Cambodia continues to put its trust in goalkeeper Vireak Dara - who was unjustly cleared after the suspicion of arranging the score at the 2024 ASEAN Cup.
Based on this list, Cambodia's midfield and attack are quite formidable. Yudai Ogawa is a midfielder who has a level playing style in Southeast Asian football. Meanwhile, up front, Kader Coulibaly has good sweeping power and will be supported by Chanthea - Cambodia's best player at the recent ASEAN Cup.
The friendly match between Vietnam and Cambodia will take place at 7:30 p.m. on March 19 at Go Dau Stadium (Binh Duong).
* Expected lineup of the Vietnam team: Goalkeeper Van Viet, Ly Duc, Thanh Chung, Thanh Binh, Minh Khoa, Quang Hai, Tien Anh, Viet Hung, Tuan Hai, Ngoc Quang, Vi Hao.
* Center back Bui Tien Dung commented: Cambodian naturalized players performed well at the recent ASEAN Cup. The team had video views to analyze the Cambodian players. To compare foreign players competing in V.League and Cambodia, foreign players in V.League are certainly of higher level. Players like me have to be more careful because I have not played much with foreign players from Cambodia.
