Effort is not enough
The image of U19 Vietnam flooding the U19 Australia field right after the opening whistle shows the high determination from the young players. Even when their opponents repeatedly conceded goals, Cong Phuong and his teammates still tried to find a goal to shorten the gap until the last minute.
U19 Vietnam's spirit of not giving up is worthy of recognition. But that cannot deny the defeat in terms of fighting techniques and qualifications of coach Hua Hien Vinh and his team.
Previously, the disastrous 1-1 draw against U19 Myanmar in the opening match put U19 Vietnam in a position where they had to win against U19 Australia. "Golden Star Warriors" cannot have the right calculations when the opponent is better in terms of body shape, technique and playing psychology.
It is not difficult to recognize the times when Vietnam U19 players stood in the wrong position, as well as the ball deployments that were easily broken by Australia U19.
In addition, the goals lost by the red shirt team came from very basic coordination by the opponent. They easily occupy good spaces inside or close to the edge of the penalty area to score goals.
U19 Vietnam's defense situation in the past 2 matches was really not good.
Warning
In addition to the 7 goals conceded to U19 Australia and U19 Myanmar, U19 Vietnam had 4 times put the ball into the opponent's net; 1 time was not recognized because of offside, 2 times came from Quang Dung's long shots and 1 time scored on the 11m mark by Bao Long.
The bright spot from U19 Vietnam's shots outside the penalty area is a positive sign. More importantly, that "weapon" comes from the initiative in training of the players and coaching staff of U19 Vietnam.
However, as sharp as the long-range shots are, the finishing situations in the penalty area are as bad. According to statistics, in addition to the successful penalty kick, U19 Vietnam missed up to 6 scoring opportunities in the penalty area against U19 Myanmar and U19 Australia.
Even though we knew before the tournament that U19 Vietnam did not have a battle-hardened attack, in a fair assessment, the finishing of Mr. Hua Hien Vinh's students was truly alarming.
Meanwhile, U19 Vietnam participates in the Southeast Asia tournament with a potential midfield. Ba Dat, Cong Phuong, Quang Vinh, Ngoc Chien... are expected to create a quality midfield for the home team.
However, most midfielders cannot demonstrate their abilities. The new discovery named Ngoc Chien shows that international competition experience is still immature, while the disappointing Ba Dat and Quang Vinh are given a lot of trust. Perhaps, Cong Phuong is the name that maintains the most stability, but he only stops at the level of roundness.
Two disappointing matches put U19 Vietnam at risk of stopping early in the U19 Southeast Asia tournament . If that happens, this will be the 4th time in the last 5 tournaments that the U19 youth team has been eliminated from the regional playground after the group stage.
Although we know that the youth tournament is only for friction, a launching pad towards the national team level later. However, the story of U19 Vietnam often not being able to enter the round of 4 of the strongest teams over the past 7 years is also a warning.
Going back in time to the period from 2013 to 2016, U19 Vietnam reached the Southeast Asian U19 finals three times in a row. Two generations of players playing for U19 Vietnam (1995-1997 and 1997-1999) helped the national team win memorable victories later.
Over the past 7 years, we have still introduced young faces to the national team, but the value they contribute to the team is extremely modest.
