There is a situation that is happening silently on the Vietnamese pitch, making football lovers feel heartbroken: More and more players are seriously injured, some have to miss many months of competition, even seemingly losing their careers. These are no longer " hard to avoid" injuries in sports collisions, but seem to be the result of an unresolved vicious cycle.
From Van Hau, Dinh Trong, Duy Manh, Van Toan, to Van Tung or Phi Hoang, most recently Ly Duc, Ngoc Tan - players who have been or are "sunk" in the increasing pain of injuries. Every time I hear about a player being seriously injured is an unanswered question: Why?
Many people will cited the tight schedule, poor quality pitch or even the habit of playing with players in tournaments. Those reasons are all correct. But that was not enough.
Injuries are not just from collisions or a pitch. It also comes from the lack of systematic preparation - from the physical foundation, training curriculum to the lack of sports medicine experts accompanying the team. We have had many academies, training grounds, and players sent abroad, but we seem to lack a comprehensive vision of how to nurture the athletes' bodies as an asset that needs to be invested and protected in the long term.
The lack of specialized medical staff and senior injury recovery experts is still a big gap. Some players had a torn knee ligament, received a few months of preliminary treatment before returning to play, then the injury recurred, became more severe, it took a whole year to return. The problem is not a fall, but an unprofessional way of getting up.
The pain on the pitch, after all, is something everyone knows will come. But if they come too often, taking the time and career of too many players, it is no longer just a matter of physical strength. It is a matter of vision and responsibility.
The phrase "has come" has been used in many problems of Vietnamese football so it will not be used again. Which must be seriously asked the question: We are training the players to win the award, or let them go long, professional and sustainable? Answer it is the deepest recovery step for football, not only healing the feet, but also the way of thinking.
