Finding the identity for Hoang Anh Gia Lai

Training perspective of HAGL & Mr. Duc

Hoang Anh Gia Lai (HAGL) was once an invincible club in 2003 and 2004. That was the time when Mr. Duc's (Chairman Doan Nguyen Duc) love for football was converted into blockbuster contracts. Kiatisak Senamuang, Dusit Chalermsan or the Vietnamese national players turned the Pleiku team into champions, with 2 V.League titles at that time.

HAGL has been famous since then. But to truly touch the love of fans, this team had to wait 10 years, with the change in ideology of Mr. Duc as well as a generation of virtuous and talented players introduced to the map of Vietnamese football. The turning point in Mr. Duc's thinking came from 2 stories. One was the meeting with coach Arsene Wenger in 2007 and the other was the day midfielder Tang Tuan refused to renew his contract with HAGL.

Wenger's idea of ​​putting children first led to Mr. Duc cutting down 5 hectares of rubber trees to build the HAGL - JMG Football Academy, starting to form the generation of Cong Phuong, Tuan Anh, Xuan Truong, Van Toan... like today. And the fact that Tang Tuan did not renew his contract with HAGL to follow the call of Binh Duong made Mr. Duc create the most famous saying in V.League history: "Players are increasingly uneducated".

After that anger, Mr. Duc focused more on the "fighting cocks" of the HAGL Football Academy. Not only football expertise, he wanted Cong Phuong, Tuan Anh, Van Toan... to be people with ethics, knowledge, and know how to behave ethically both on and off the field. From the U19 Vietnam team in the 2013-2014 period, the debut of V.League 2015 as well as participating in tournaments at the national team level, HAGL players have all brought sympathy from fans with a kindness in their playing style as well as their interpersonal relationships.

With Mr. Duc, his players can lose. But absolutely, they cannot behave uncivilized and ugly on the field. His players can be stars loved by everyone. But they are not allowed to be arrogant and disrespectful to the fans. "Playing well, losing is okay" or "Playing badly, even if I win, I don't care" may be Mr. Duc's justification after a series of unsuccessful matches in many seasons of HAGL. But at least, the fans of the mountain town team still love them. Because this club owns decent players.

Hoang Anh Gia Lai must find its true self if it wants to be loved by fans again.

Journey of Rediscovery

A Vietnamese newspaper once affirmed that HAGL is trying to create good values, which are important to form a new cultural background, contributing to changing the audience's prejudice about the ugliness that has been associated with Vietnamese players such as playing dirty, playing rudely, unsportsmanlike behavior, insulting referees...

Mr. Duc's ideology really makes HAGL very unique, despite not having good results through the seasons in V.League. Even when the stars of the first batch - HAGL such as Cong Phuong, Xuan Truong, Tuan Anh, Van Toan... gradually leave, the core values ​​based on the philosophy of the personality boss are still enough to help HAGL be loved by fans.

However, that value faded in the second half of last year's season or this year's V.League. Instead of a HAGL ready to contribute on the field, pragmatism towards favorable results is what the team's coaching staff chose. Perhaps, that strategy has brought certain effectiveness to HAGL in terms of points. But the controversy and contradiction in the football philosophy of the mountain town team or the feelings from the fans have also begun to appear.

Then in the 19th round, an unsightly image appeared at HAGL. The Head of the delegation and the Technical Director stormed into the referee room to insult a situation where the referee had made the right decision, in not recognizing the illegal goal of the Pleiku home team. HAGL's fanpage continuously made a fuss on social networks, even when the evidence they cited... went against the very viewpoint they put forth. Fans were fed up with HAGL's uncivilized behavior. Many people thoughtfully remembered the time when HAGL was decent, creating a model of ethical standards for players...

It was Mr. Duc's heart and vision that greatly contributed to rekindling the love of fans across the country. The businessman from Binh Dinh province constantly warned the Cong Phuong generation not to play dirty, play dirty or behave offensively towards fans...

In the end, HAGL still had its own aspects of success from 2015 to 2020, despite their ups and downs in the V.League rankings. Because fans see a humane identity in this club. This is also the place that nurtures talents for the national team over the years. However, at the present time, the mountain town team is walking on a tightrope, having lost something valuable that is not easy to obtain in a day or two.

Cultivating a generation of exemplary players

In the gray picture at HAGL at present, this team at least still finds light at the end of the tunnel. The ego of creating conditions for young players to rub shoulders, compete and mature is still present in Pleiku. Dinh Quang Kiet and Tran Gia Bao are two teenage players who have debuted for HAGL in particular and V.League in general.

Although both are young, they maintain the core element of Mr. Duc. That is the ethics of the field. In addition to being 1m95 tall, center-back Quang Kiet is also a well-behaved and hard-working player. Although he did not start out as a good player, Quang Kiet compensates with diligence and effort. He always actively follows each lecture of the head coach, absorbs and exchanges with his assistants. Even when not given the opportunity to play, Quang Kiet still responds with professionalism and discipline.

Tran Gia Bao is also a player who is highly regarded for his politeness and manners off the field. On the field, the handsome player complies with every request of the head coach. Although he is only a supporting actor and only enters the field from the bench, Gia Bao does not become discouraged, give up or have an unprofessional attitude towards the coach. In return, he always keeps in mind that he must prove himself on the field when given the opportunity.

Source: https://cand.com.vn/the-thao/tim-lai-ban-nga-cho-hoang-anh-gia-lai-i766295/