At Hang Day Stadium on the evening of March 26, the 3-0 victory of the Vietnamese team over Bangladesh brought a pleasant feeling. This is probably the first time under coach Kim Sang-sik, the Vietnamese team has scored 3 goals in the first half.
But not only because of the score, some aspects of the current team are recorded from a positive perspective.
The first bright spot lies in the personnel structure. The team is no longer dependent on a fixed axis. The versatility of many positions opens up the possibility of swaps and adjustments, helping coach Kim Sang-sik have more space to experiment and handle situations. With a football background where the depth of force is always a concern, this is a noteworthy sign.
From that human foundation, the attacking moves also become softer. The ball no longer focuses too much on target strikers like Tien Linh or Xuan Son in the previous period. Instead, there is spread, more diverse approaches towards the opponent's goal.
2 goals from set pieces, 1 goal from individual efforts, along with good finishes from Hoang Duc, Hoang Hen prove that.
Of course, it must also be added that the presence of Hoang Hen (playing the whole match) and then Xuan Son (season 2) is an important support to help satellites play confidently, even ready to push high to score goals like Hai Long - one of the best players in this match.
Another notable detail lies in the "natural connection" between the players. People from the same club, or who have been side by side for many years, clearly understand each other better in each handling, from movement to passing rhythm.
This is not new, but in the context of the national team frequently changing personnel, it becomes an advantage that cannot be underestimated.
However, there are still issues that need to be re-handled.
In the second half, the Bangladesh team chose to push up the squad, increasing pressure, and the Vietnam team began to reveal gaps. In addition to offside situations, signs of losing rhythm in the pressing phase appeared, causing more misplaced passes.
It's just that the away team's attack is not good enough to penetrate when there is an opportunity. This point needs to be noted when facing a stronger opponent.
Efficiency in finishing also returned in the second half of the match. Except for a rather regrettable long-range shot that hit the post by Hoang Hen, Xuan Son, Van Khang or Gia Hung all missed opportunities, even though it could have been on the ground.
Hoang Hen and Xuan Son also have very little connection when there are not many vertical plays.
Therefore, before meeting the Malaysian team again on March 31, coach Kim Sang-sik and his colleagues need to pay attention to the issues in the second half of the match against opponent ranked 181st in the world.
