The most miraculous thing Xuan Son did at the AFF Cup

MCLASS PERFORMANCE

Xuan Son won the title of “Best Player of the Tournament” and “Top Scorer” at the AFF Cup 2024, despite only playing 5 matches. The history of Southeast Asian football has never recorded a more impressive debut. Nguyen Xuan Son only needed 5 matches to convince everyone, making those who do not follow the Vietnamese team regularly still respect him because there is a “brown-skinned Vietnamese with black eyes” who has helped the country’s football become famous after Nearly 2 years of ups and downs.

The striker born in 1997 brings together what the Vietnamese team has been looking for for many years: a classy and omnipotent striker who can score goals, create assists, build walls, connect the play, with a seemingly endless source of energy. seemingly endless and overflowing with enthusiasm. Just 2 weeks of training to integrate perfectly with the Vietnamese team, then 2 more weeks of competition to carry the collective to the top of Southeast Asia, what Xuan Son did exceeded the expectations of experts. , to the point that coach Kim Sang-sik had to say “if there’s anything that’s not complete, it’s probably the fact that I haven’t been able to celebrate the championship with Xuan Son”.

Before Xuan Son, Vietnamese football had never recorded any naturalized player playing for the national team in the official tournament. The barrier of prejudice against players of foreign origin has been simmering for many years, like an unwritten rule preventing naturalized stars from entering the national team. But, Xuan Son came and broke the rules. Because he has class, love for Vietnam and the desire to contribute to the national team. Not every naturalized player has all these factors like “Mr. Ta” Xuan Son, who every afternoon takes his wife and children to the market to buy banana bread. Xuan Son loves Vietnam, loves singing the National Anthem and every time he enters the field, he burns like a “torch” to contribute to the place that gave him the second spring of his career.

With that brilliant performance, Xuan Son will pave the way for naturalized players to play for the Vietnamese team. Fans and professionals have a good example to understand that every player should be given the opportunity, regardless of background, as long as they have enough qualifications and desire. A naturalized player can love Vietnam as much as any Vietnamese person, and brings professional quality that at this time, hardly any native player can match.

CBALANCED SOLUTIONS

The success of Xuan Son, or previously Dang Van Lam or Nguyen Filip, will create inspiration for the Vietnamese team to have new resources. Jason Quang Vinh and Hendrio Araujo are waiting to be naturalized, or Victor Le, Adou Minh… are all potential options, which coach Kim Sang-sik can refer to once they complete the paperwork. This is a source of players that the world has long exploited. The Vietnamese team should approach with a more open mindset.

However, naturalization is not the only path. Vietnamese football still needs to stand on its own feet and not be lax in training young people. Expert Doan Minh Xuong commented: “We need a comprehensive player development strategy for goals such as reaching the 2027 Asian Cup Finals or the 2030 World Cup Finals. Naturalization is good, but it should only be applied to certain positions. The core of the Vietnamese team must still be to build a framework of talented native players, focusing on training young people and the next generation. When naturalizing, we also need to consider Be careful about that location Is it really necessary? Do naturalized players have enough desire to contribute, learn Vietnamese and understand Vietnamese football culture?

Victory at the AFF Cup 2024 has given the Vietnamese team a favorable psychological springboard. Vietnam’s spirit and morale have returned, but it’s all at the top. The origin of Vietnamese football cannot be resolved with only naturalized players like Xuan Son. But let’s look more closely: Coach Kim Sang-sik has won the AFF Cup mainly with old faces, and will pass his peak in just a few years. The young player’s mark is lackluster.

Coach Kim Sang-sik also emphasized in an interview with Adolescentthat the first thing he did after the AFF Cup 2024 was to continue going to the football field to look for “rough gems” – young faces to continue for the Vietnamese team. “They are the future of Vietnamese football, so we must hone and create opportunities,” Mr. Kim affirmed. Only when the naturalization of players and youth training can be harmonized will the Vietnamese team have a solid squad framework for major tournaments.