Vietnam – Thailand first leg final today: Waiting for Xuan Son to hunt down the ‘war elephant’

NFAITH TO WIN AT VIET TRI

Viet Tri Stadium is emerging as the “prestigious” home stadium of Vietnamese football, where the national teams have been undefeated so far. As for the Vietnamese team, they have a winning streak against Indonesia (1-0), Myanmar (5-0), and Singapore (3-1). Coach Kim Sang-sik and his team scored 9 goals and conceded only once against 3 very strong teams in Southeast Asia. The ticket fever in recent days shows fans’ belief in victory over Thailand’s number 1 rival. Responding to this belief, coach Kim Sang-sik has a very clear plan to defeat the “war elephant” at Viet Tri, creating an advantage for the final battle at Rajamangala field on January 5.

Mr. Kim will “use leisure to fight fatigue”, drawing Thailand into his forte physical battle at Viet Tri. In particular, Xuan Son, with his strong ability to press and build walls, will be ready to exhaust Thailand’s uncertain defense (conceding 7 goals in 6 matches). Mr. Kim’s strategy of rotating players, with 6 different starting lineups in 6 matches, is working. Every position in the Vietnamese team is guaranteed to have 2-3 names always ready to fight. In the absence of Van Toan and Tan Tai, Ngoc Quang, Hai Long, Vi Hao, Tien Anh and Van Thanh (recovered from injury) were worthy replacements. That will be a huge difference compared to the Thai players who were exhausted after 120 minutes of stressful semi-final second leg against the Philippines in Rajamangala, then had to fly from Bangkok to Vietnam, with only 1 day off. Striker Teerasak Poeiphimai suffered a recurring back injury. Suphanat Mueanta had to be hospitalized after coach Masatada Ishii reluctantly sent him onto the field to rescue the “War Elephant”, and will not be able to play at Viet Tri.

AhP THE MOTIVATION WILL BE THE MOTIVATION

The pressure of a final match will be very different, in the context that the Vietnamese team has many players taking on responsibility for the first time in a major tournament, such as Dinh Trieu, Hai Long, Vi Hao, Van Khang, Tien Anh… However , completing the target of reaching the finals helps the players feel much more comfortable. The experienced main frame Duy Manh, Thanh Chung, Tien Dung, Hoang Duc, Quang Hai, Tien Linh… will help coach Kim Sang-sik balance the team’s mentality. Even Xuan Son’s “destructive” form (5 goals in 3 matches) and great combination with Tien Linh (who together scored 8 goals in the last 3 matches) are spreading strong excitement to the team. the whole team. The difference called Xuan Son is helping us for the first time in history confidently consider proactively attacking directly to defeat Thailand.

Former captain of the Vietnamese team Le Cong Vinh commented: “The Vietnamese team has many experienced players who have played in the AFF Cup finals or advanced to the Asian Cup or World Cup qualifiers. Coach Kim Sang-sik is creating a team. Evenly distributed across all lines, gathering a strong team spirit will further motivate the team that is eager to defeat Thailand.

We understand that getting good results in the first leg will make it easier to calculate the return match. This can create invisible pressure, making some areas feel heavier. But that’s normal in a final. The Vietnamese team needs to clearly determine that no matter where they play, they must defeat their opponents. Thailand’s defense is no longer as strong as before, their mentality is shaken after two unconvincing matches against the Philippines. I believe the players will try their best, go out on the field with hot hearts and keep cool heads against a Thai opponent who is very good at provoking, to defeat them in Viet Tri!”.