Xuan Son: Painful shoulder and warrior spirit

Locked down, Xuan Son is still very good

As the brightest star of the Vietnamese team with 3 impressive performances against Myanmar and Singapore (first and second leg), perhaps Nguyen Xuan Son anticipated what would happen in the final leg of the AFF Cup 2024 with Thailand. Lan. He will be closely marked, even played badly, and used tricks to destroy him by the pair of central defenders Pansa Hemviboon and Chalermsak Aukkee of Thailand. Every pass towards Xuan Son will be followed closely, and when he holds the ball, no less than 2 Thai players will rush in to block it. That’s exactly what happened at Viet Tri Stadium last night (January 2), when the Thai team did everything they could to prevent Vietnam from scoring.

Thailand has succeeded… half. Coach Masatada Ishii’s students defended well, locked Xuan Son and forced the Vietnamese striker to retreat to the middle of the field to play the ball. In the context of the connection between Xuan Son and the neighboring detonators becoming loose because Vi Hao and Ngoc Quang were not in sync, the Vietnamese team was deadlocked throughout the first half.

However, marking Xuan Son is never a matter of one round. Before the break, there was concern when the 28-year-old striker fell to the field, holding his shoulder in pain. Shoulders are very important for players, because they are weapons to shield, press and maintain balance. Xuan Son’s pain at that time was the sum of many collisions with the Thai defender. And when the number 12 striker’s face grimaced, something bad could have happened.

KHIPS GIVE UP

However, Xuan Son did not give up. He stood up and continued to plow through the second half as if there had never been a collision. Statement “We don’t know who Xuan Son is?” Chalermsak’s is just a pure provoking tactic, because Chalermsak in particular and Thailand in general have carefully researched the Brazilian detonator to neutralize it. However, the away team probably did not expect the Vietnamese striker to be so resilient, determined and stubborn.

Xuan Son has proven the bravery of the best striker in Southeast Asia today. He ran wisely, then headed powerfully to open the score. Next, he accelerated across nearly half the length of the field and then kicked a cross-angled left foot shot into Thailand’s net. The Vietnamese team has never had a player score two goals against Thailand in one match, until Xuan Son appeared.

Thanks to the Brazilian-born striker, the Vietnamese team can play in the most straightforward and simple way, but still with the highest efficiency: tight defense, quick counterattack, aiming the ball up for Xuan Son to handle and then… calculating the next step. according to. Playing like that against Thailand, one can understand how great the pressure is on Xuan Son’s shoulders. But with painful shoulders, he still overcame it. Just like in the previous match against Singapore, he swept so well that the only way for his opponent to stop him was to tear his shirt. The opponent’s helplessness and struggles only enhance the resilient warrior qualities that Xuan Son is instilling in the Vietnamese team.

Rajamangala Stadium on January 5, please wait. Nguyen Xuan Son and the Vietnamese team are coming!