Vietnam team benefits when Hoang Duc returns to his true self

The courage of Hoang Duc

“Vietnamese players need to meet the criteria in terms of physique, technique, experience and football mindset. In the Vietnamese team, we only have two players who meet all of the above factors, namely Bui Hoang Viet Anh and Nguyen Hoang Duc. They are capable of playing at the top level in Europe. If we had 20 Hoang Ducs or 20 Viet Anhs, Vietnamese football could completely participate in the World Cup,” former coach Philippe Troussier of the Vietnamese team once shared.

Under coach Troussier, Hoang Duc had no place. The midfielder born in 1998 was tested as a striker in the early stages of Troussier's tenure. Then, the experiment... failed and Hoang Duc was removed from the plan.

Hoang Duc (red shirt) plays the most stable role in the Vietnamese team at AFF Cup 2024

Although he did not use his student, Coach Troussier still highly appreciated Hoang Duc in his final comments before leaving Vietnam. Hoang Duc was not used because he did not fit the tactics, or for reasons other than professional skills. Only insiders can understand the story. However, even someone who is determined not to use Hoang Duc like Mr. Troussier still praised him (French coaches rarely praise Vietnamese players), which partly shows the value of this player.

Hoang Duc's career is like a sine wave graph. He once affirmed his name in the youth team of Viettel 's The Cong, stepped up to the U.20 Vietnam team, before becoming the subject of gossip for missing a delicious opportunity in the goalless draw against U.20 New Zealand at the U.20 World Cup 2017. Hoang Duc tried very hard, and was later called up by coach Park Hang-seo to the U.22 Vietnam team. The long-range shot that helped U.22 Vietnam come back to defeat U.22 Indonesia at the 31st SEA Games (in 2019) was a highlight in Hoang Duc's career, helping him pave the way to become a pillar of the Vietnam team (before that he was only on the bench).

Hoang Duc’s career flourished after that with a starting position, along with the title of Vietnam Golden Ball, before falling into a “deep hole” during the year of Mr. Troussier’s tenure. When his career was just starting to flourish again thanks to coach Kim Sang-sik taking the coaching seat, he made a controversial choice. Not going abroad, not staying at The Cong Viettel to play in the V-League, but… being relegated to the first division.

Hoang Duc, Hai Long (number 24) and Ngoc Tan (number 25) played prominently in the midfield.

Hoang Duc did not hide the reason, which was to earn money to support his family because his football career was very short. A member of the team's coaching staff shared with Thanh Nien Newspaper: "I feel sorry for Hoang Duc, I wish he had gone to Japan or Korea to play. Why not?". On the day of his debut at Ninh Binh Club, Hoang Duc was asked if he could keep his position if he was relegated to the first division. After only 1 month, everyone had an answer.

Spectacular comeback

Coach Kim Sang-sik met Hoang Duc privately and emphasized that he would create conditions for his student to return. Like Mr. Troussier, Mr. Kim saw Hoang Duc's ability. But the difference was: he created a good enough launching pad to motivate his student.

Hoang Duc had a memorable tournament, returning to the role of central midfielder and being the player who played the most in the team. With a good sweeper like Doan Ngoc Tan by his side, Hoang Duc was given space to play and show his unique strengths: deploying the ball vertically on the pitch thanks to his ability to cover skillfully, dribble at speed and pass the ball well.

Hoang Duc returns, but the road ahead is still very long

A former member of the team’s coaching staff commented: “To get the ball from Hoang Duc, perhaps the only way is to… foul.” Hoang Duc does not dribble much, but his dribbling is skillful, often eliminating opponents and opening up space for movement. He has a good enough physique to withstand the opponent’s back-to-back attacks, turns the ball quickly and skillfully, and has abundant ideas to build up the play.

To evaluate a player like Hoang Duc, we cannot measure the number of goals or assists, but must look at the whole picture. In that picture, the tactical vision of the midfielder from Ninh Binh is shown in the core indicators: he recovers the ball, passes short and accurate passes on the opponent's field, creates opportunities and escapes the ball best in the Vietnam team. Thanks to that, the Vietnam team can develop the ball against strong and fast opponents like Thailand or Singapore, even though they have less possession of the ball but do not lose control of the game.

It is not possible to say too much about Hoang Duc after just one short tournament. However, when inspiration flows, believe that the 27-year-old player will soon return to his peak years.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/doi-tuyen-viet-nam-huong-loi-khi-hoang-duc-tro-lai-la-chinh-minh-185250107194639936.htm