At the meeting on the evening of December 6 in Laos, all 26 players and members of the coaching staff unanimously elected Do Duy Manh as captain of the Vietnamese team at the AFF Cup 2024. The vice-captains are Nguyen Tien Linh and Nguyen Quang Hai.
Before that, few people thought that the center back of Hanoi club would hold this responsibility.
For nearly 3 years, Duy Manh has rarely been the captain or a member of the team's executive committee. At the AFF Cup 2024, the player born in 1996 is only younger than a few teammates such as Bui Tien Dung, Nguyen Filip, Nguyen Dinh Trieu, Doan Ngoc Tan and the same age as Le Pham Thanh Long, Chau Ngoc Quang, Nguyen Van Toan or Vu Van Thanh.
In fact, in terms of years of playing for the national team and contribution to the overall achievements, Do Duy Manh is in the top group with Quang Hai, Tien Linh or Tien Dung. Therefore, Duy Manh taking on the role of leader is suitable in theory.
In addition, Do Duy Manh's performance and commanding style during the training session in Korea greatly influenced the thinking of his teammates and coaching staff.
Previously, when Do Hung Dung and Que Ngoc Hai were still on the Vietnamese team, the task of encouraging the spirit, calling out and commanding the whole team belonged to this duo.
As they gradually retreated into the background, the Vietnamese team tried to give the captain's armband to a number of players, but no one did as well as Duy Manh. In 3 friendly matches against strong Korean clubs, Duy Manh clearly showed his leadership role, motivating his teammates on the field and leading the 5-man defense. Duy Manh's presence helped Nguyen Filip ease his worries about communicating with his teammates.
Basically, after electing the executive committee, the Vietnamese team has completed the preparation process for the AFF Cup 2024. The presence of Xuan Son, the high performance of Tien Linh and the return of Pham Tuan Hai help Mr. Kim Sang-sik ease his worries about the attack.
In defense, the Vietnamese team has Nguyen Filip and Dinh Trieu who are performing consistently in goal. Do Duy Manh - the captain will have his 4th AFF Cup alongside Bui Tien Dung, combining with central defenders who are at the peak of their careers such as Thanh Chung, Viet Anh and Thanh Binh.
The midfield of the "Golden Star Warriors" is waiting for the explosion of new players such as Chau Ngoc Quang, Doan Ngoc Tan, Quang Hai and Hoang Duc.
Vietnam will play its opening match against Laos on December 9. After that, coach Kim Sang-sik and his team will play Indonesia (December 15), the Philippines (December 18) and Myanmar (December 21).
