On the evening of March 24, Lao national team coach - Mr. Ha Hyeok-jun and player Damoth Thongkham Savath attended a press conference before the match with the Vietnam national team in the opening match of Group F of the final qualifying round of the 2027 Asian Cup.
Regarding the goal in this match, coach Ha Hyeok-jun said: "I will try my best in tomorrow's match. Although we don't know if we will win or lose. However, we will definitely try our best to ensure that the Vietnamese team does not have an easy victory".
On February 22, coach Ha Hyeok-jun went to Binh Duong to watch the match featuring striker Nguyen Tien Linh. When asked about what he will get out of it after coming to Binh Duong, Mr. Ha Hyeok-jun highly appreciated striker Tien Linh and expressed his excitement about the weather in Binh Duong.
"Tien Linh is one of my favorite players in the Vietnam national team. I came here to see the stadium, competition conditions and Tien Linh. Linh is one of the best players of the Vietnam national team. I think the weather is the same. I like the weather in Ho Chi Minh City as well as Binh Duong," said the Laos coach.
Unlike the 2024 ASEAN Cup, in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers, the Laos team has 3 more overseas Laos players. However, coach Ha Hyeok-jun said the players still need more time to adapt.
"With 3 overseas Vietnamese players, they do not have much time to practice. These players have only joined the team 2 days before the match against Sri Lanka, so they have not had much time to integrate. I have not assessed it immediately. They need time to adapt.
Compared to the ASEAN Cup, we do not have many differences. After the tournament, we have to return players to the club. There are less than 10 days to prepare for this campaign. The Laos team needs to do a lot of work," said coach Ha Hyeok-jun.
The Korean strategist also expressed his desire to develop Lao football based on Lao-origin players, as well as hope to send Lao players to compete abroad.
He said: "For me, it is not the important thing to have foreign players. I want to develop and make Laos stronger with players of Lao origin. I want to take the Lao national team players to Korea, Thailand or Vietnam to compete. To develop the Laos team, it is necessary to send players abroad. That makes Laos stronger like Thailand and Vietnam".
The match between the Laos team and the Vietnam team will take place at 7:30 p.m. tomorrow (March 25.) at Binh Duong Stadium.
