Son is still very much in her prime!

A DIFFICULT BEGINNING

The Singapore team had thoroughly studied Nguyen Xuan Son's playing style. In the match on the evening of December 26th at Jalan Besar Stadium, coach Tsutomu Ogura consistently assigned center-back Lionel Tan to closely mark Xuan Son in every play. With his ideal physique, the player wearing number 15 managed to relatively effectively contain the Vietnamese team's number one threat.

Xuan Son shone brightly to bring home the victory against Singapore.

With opponents marking him closely, Xuan Son was almost unable to turn and shoot, and his aerial duels were less effective. At the same time, the Singapore defense isolated Xuan Son from his teammates by proactively anticipating passes aimed at this forward.

Coupled with the artificial turf at Jalan Besar Stadium, the Vietnamese team found it very difficult to control the ball. With only 31% possession, Coach Kim Sang-sik's players had a tough match. Xuan Son was starved of the ball, often receiving it in difficult positions. The 1997-born striker only managed one impromptu overhead kick that hit the crossbar after the opponent had deliberately pushed forward to set an offside trap. Otherwise, the players around him, such as Vi Hao, Thanh Binh, and Quang Hai, were unable to create enough space for Xuan Son to maneuver.

Vietnam scored two goals in injury time to beat Singapore in a match played entirely under VAR.

Even VAR couldn't stop Son .

When VAR and referee Ko Kyung-jin disallowed Xuan Son's spectacular goal, claiming the Vietnamese striker handled the ball, many probably thought of it as an unlucky day for the player wearing jersey number 12.

However, world-class stars like Xuan Son only need a moment to shine, although the 27-year-old striker had to wait until injury time to make his mark. In the 90+8th minute, he applied just enough pressure to cause the Singapore defender to handle the ball, earning a penalty which Tien Linh successfully converted. Xuan Son then sealed Singapore's hopes with a close-range tap-in, securing a 2-0 victory.

Numbers 12 and 22 delivered a superb performance for Vietnam.

Photo: Xuan Phuong

It's impossible to say that Xuan Son had a brilliant game, having overcome the difficulties. However, he only needed a split second for his own moment of joy. But to achieve that split second, Xuan Son put in tremendous effort. Just like in the match against Myanmar, Xuan Son strived to break free from the Singapore defenders' encirclement. He made runs, drifted to the flanks, contested for the ball, drew defenders away, and did everything he could to ignite Vietnam's attack on the Jalan Besar Stadium pitch.

Xuan Son's passionate enthusiasm warmed the otherwise "cold" attacking style displayed by Coach Kim Sang-sik and his team throughout the 90 minutes against Singapore. It was the never-give-up spirit that Coach Kim always wanted from his players: fight until the very last minute.

In a few days at Viet Tri Stadium, it is believed that Xuan Son will continue to torment the Singapore defense.

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Source: https://thanhnien.vn/son-van-con-xuan-lam-185241227003412758.htm