The shining one is the old factor
Round 1 of LPBank V.League 2024-2025 kicked off on Saturday evening (September 14) with 3 matches, including a notable clash between Hanoi FC and Quy Nhon Binh Dinh. Vietnam National Team coach Kim Sang-sik was present in the stands of Hang Day Stadium. It is understood that he came to monitor the performance of 7 Hanoi FC players he had called up to the national team at FIFA Days in September. Among them, Hung Dung, Thanh Chung, Xuan Manh, Tuan Hai, Hai Long started, Van Truong replaced Hai Long in the second half and Van Tung played for about 10 minutes in the last half. In an uncomfortable match for the home team, no player could solve the match, and in the end, the shining factor was a familiar name - Van Quyet, Hanoi FC captain for the last 2 consecutive seasons and the best domestic striker of the V.League.
Participating in this mark was the pass of… Van Tung, the 23-year-old player who was not used by Mr. Kim Sang-sik for a single minute in the two matches against the Russian team and the Thai team in the recent LPBank Cup 2024 friendly tournament.
As soon as Van Quyet scored, the television camera turned to the Korean coach. It really meant a lot. What did the 47-year-old coach think at that time? Obviously, after succeeding Philippe Troussier, he learned and received a lot of advice from Park Hang-seo - the most successful coach with the Vietnam Men's Football Team, on many issues, including Van Quyet's story.
Will Kim Sang-sik break the barrier?
Van Quyet has no luck with the national team, despite his acknowledged ability. That has been said for a long time, and said a lot. So much so that the striker from Thach That, who won 2 Vietnam Golden Balls, almost accepted that his career was not complete in the half dedicated to the national team.
It's not that Van Quyet hasn't been called up to the national team. In fact, he has played 58 matches (scoring 16 goals) since his debut in 2011. But even though he was a member of the 2018 AFF Cup champion squad and the 2022 runner-up, his contributions - or more precisely, his role - were too small to feel like a winner. It's different from his role and influence at Hanoi FC.
Teams and clubs are different, of course, but the story of coaches being influenced by the views of their predecessors is not right. Mr. Troussier called and then did not use Van Quyet when he had a strong policy of rejuvenating the squad, which is somewhat understandable. What about Mr. Kim? In a recent interview, he clearly affirmed that his job is not to rejuvenate the team but to achieve results.
To achieve results, you need the best people. Saying Van Quyet does not fit the playing style, the coach's style? Maybe, but he makes up for it with efficiency. 16 goals help Van Quyet currently rank 5th in the list of the team's best scorers.
Each has their own style, but while Tien Linh scores goals from inside the box, Van Quyet can also be a solution for long-range shooting. In 4 matches of the Vietnam team under Kim Sang-sik, only 1 goal was from a shot outside the box.
Is Van Quyet's age of 33 too old? If he was over 30 years old and was preparing to "retire" - unless they were proactive, the football world would not have had Ryan Giggs, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Cristiano Ronaldo, Luka Modric...
