AFF Cup: What challenges await the Vietnamese team when they have to fight against Myanmar?

Only getting a 1-1 draw against the Philippines on December 18 caused the Vietnamese team to miss the opportunity to win an early ticket to the semi-finals of the 2024 Southeast Asian Football Championship (AFF Cup). In theory, the Vietnamese team Coach Kim Sang-sik still has many doors to continue, as Vietnam only needs at least 1 point against Myanmar to advance to the next round with the top position in Group B.

However, the Vietnamese team is still at risk of being eliminated if they lose to Myanmar with a difference of 2 goals or more. While still competing, it means that risks are still possible. Especially when Myanmar has been cornered. The Myanmar team must defeat Vietnam to have a chance to advance. In this context, the task of winning 1 point against Myanmar is expected to be difficult for the Vietnamese team.

The physical strength of Vietnamese team players is eroded

First, the physical fitness of Vietnamese players will be questioned. Coach Kim Sang-sik’s team has just gone through a dense travel and competition schedule. After the match against the Philippines on the evening of December 18, the Vietnamese team did not board the plane until late on December 19 and arrived in Hanoi in the early morning of December 20. Immediately, Tien Linh and his teammates moved from Hanoi to Phu Tho to head to the match against Myanmar tonight (December 21). It can be seen that the Vietnamese team only had one day to prepare for the important match in the final round of the group stage.

The physical strength of Vietnamese players will more or less be eroded. At the official training session at Viet Tri Stadium on December 21, coach Kim Sang-sik received bad news, when Doan Ngoc Tan and Nguyen Hai Long had health problems, had to practice separately and asked for the intervention of the team. doctor. These are both very important names under Mr. Kim, after what has happened at the AFF Cup 2024 up to now. Hai Long once scored to break the deadlock, leading to a 4-1 win over Laos. Meanwhile, Ngoc Tan played the role of hero with a goal in injury time, helping Vietnam regain a golden point at home in the Philippines.

Myanmar’s strengths

On the contrary, the physical factor is considered the strongest point of the Myanmar team, besides the spirit of participating as if there is nothing to lose when forced to defeat Vietnam. In the opening match against the Indonesian team, Myanmar showed that they are a team with a very good physical foundation. Especially in the first 2/3 of the match, Myo Hlaing Win’s team had a very unpleasant playing style.

Thanks to their good physical foundation, Myanmar players continuously played closely with high intensity and fought fiercely, causing the opponent to face many difficulties in deploying the ball. Although the Indonesian team had better control of the ball, it was deadlocked, and it took until the 76th minute to score against Myanmar thanks to Pratama Arhan’s powerful throw-in “weapon”.

When the Vietnamese team meets Myanmar, the same match as above will likely repeat. The Vietnamese team will probably take control, while Myanmar plays defensive counter-attack and promotes the familiar playing style of chasing and pressing quickly. If the Vietnamese team still cannot show many well-coordinated pieces (like the past 3 matches), it will definitely have difficulty against Myanmar.

However, Myanmar’s clingy playing style consumes a lot of physical strength. In the second half, many Myanmar players will lose strength. The Vietnamese team can exploit this by increasing the pace of the match, constantly pressing to deliver the finishing blow to the opponent.