Hoang Duc’s next match was better than the previous match. Will the Thai match be perfect in the final?

Hoang Duc’s silent contributions

In the semi-final second leg between the Vietnamese team and Singapore last night (December 29), Hoang Duc was the one who made the decisive pass for Nguyen Xuan Son to score to increase the score to 2-0 for the Vietnamese team.

That was also the rare time this midfielder appeared in the opponent’s penalty area. During the previous period of the semi-final second leg in particular and in the previous journey of the Vietnamese team in general, Hoang Duc was often placed quite far from the penalty area (except for the first half of the match against Indonesia in group stage, he played as a back striker).

The fact that Hoang Duc plays away from the opponent’s penalty area is within the tactical requirements of coach Kim Sang-sik. The Korean coach wants Hoang Duc to act as a moderator of the play, even as a ball retriever for the Vietnamese team, when the opponent brings the ball into our field.

Up to this point, Hoang Duc has fulfilled the role mentioned above. The Vietnamese team at the AFF Cup does not have the type of muscle to play in the midfield, similar to the nature of Nguyen Minh Chau at the 2008 AFF Cup or Nguyen Huy Hung and Pham Duc Huy at the 2018 AFF Cup (tournaments where the Vietnamese team South East Asia Champion). However, so far we are still competing well in the midfield, still defending well from afar.

That is thanks to Hoang Duc’s role. He did not recover the ball with a hasty play, but regained the ball with wisdom in disputes, with very good ball keeping and passing techniques. Hoang Duc’s image at the AFF Cup 2024 is similar to that of Nguyen Tuan Anh before: a powerful central midfielder both in supporting defense and attack, a technician but ready to play the role of the “background” person for teammates around him.

Ready to shine in the finals

But Hoang Duc can be even better and more explosive in the next matches when asked by the coach. Mr. Kim Sang-sik began to think about pushing Hoang Duc higher, in some moments of important matches, to create surprise for the opponent. In such a high situation, Hoang Duc passed the ball to Xuan Son to score against Singapore last night, as stated at the beginning of the article.

Many domestic football experts also predicted Hoang Duc’s ability to shine in the first and second leg of the finals. Former VFF Professional Vice President Duong Vu Lam said: “I have high hopes for Hoang Duc in the key matches of the Vietnamese team at this year’s tournament. He has both good technique and good physique (tall). 1.84 m). He has moves that opponents cannot expect. Hoang Duc will know how to shine in decisive moments.”

Meanwhile, former coach of the Vietnamese team, Mr. Phan Thanh Hung said: “Players like Xuan Son, Tien Linh, Quang Hai, Hoang Duc will play an important role for the Vietnamese team in the finals. They will be ready for the upcoming championship match.”

Hoang Duc is also the only player in the group of stars mentioned above who has not scored for the Vietnamese team at this year’s AFF Cup. However, that makes him even more dangerous, because Hoang Duc’s attacking style of play has not yet been exposed to his opponents!