Singaporean media analyzes the strength of the Vietnamese team, surprisingly talks about Xuan Son

The first leg of the semi-final between Vietnam and Singapore will take place at 8pm on December 26. This is the first semi-final match of the AFF Cup 2024, played on the Jalan Besar artificial turf field. As the top team in Group B and possessing an even squad, Singaporean media believes that the advantage is leaning towards coach Kim Sang-sik's team.

In an article on the evening of December 23, The Straits Times commented: “Looking at each position on the field, the current strength of the Singapore team cannot be compared to the Vietnam team. The opponent of the team led by coach Ogura Tsutomu has cohesion, experience and evenness in all three lines. Moreover, most of the Vietnamese players play domestically, so their cohesion cannot be underestimated.

Comments before the Singapore - Vietnam match: Will Xuan Son continue to shine?

In addition, fear may greatly affect the Singapore team in the upcoming match. Since 2008, Singapore has met the Vietnam team 8 times. Whether in official tournaments or friendly matches, we have never won against this opponent. More importantly, Singapore has only scored 1 goal in 8 direct meetings (a 1-1 draw in a friendly match in November 2010), which happened more than 14 years ago. It can be seen that Singapore is facing one of the most difficult teams in Southeast Asia.

Singaporean media assessed that the home team will face many difficulties against the Vietnamese team even though they play at home in the first leg of the AFF Cup 2024 semi-final.

Xuan Son attracts special attention

Meanwhile, the Singapore version of Berita Harian also highly appreciated the strength of the Vietnamese team. In particular, striker Nguyen Xuan Son continued to receive special attention.

The Singaporean newspaper wrote: “In addition to star Quang Hai, who is gradually regaining his form and playing brilliantly in the group stage of the 2024 AFF Cup, the Vietnamese team has now been strengthened by Nguyen Xuan Son. He has just been naturalized and had to sit out 3 matches, but in his debut match, the Brazilian-born striker proved that coach Kim Sang-sik's decision to call him up was completely deserved.

The 27-year-old player brings the charm of the Samba dance to the "Golden Star Warriors". He plays aggressively, shows his diverse finishing ability and scores two goals and two assists. In a broader sense, the 1.85 m tall striker plays well with both feet, has really exploded in form after returning to Nam Dinh Club in August 2023: scoring 46 goals and 8 assists in just 40 matches. In the 2023-2024 season, he scored 31 goals, surpassing the record of 25 goals set by Vietnamese legend Le Huynh Duc in 1996."

Xuan Son surprised Singaporean media because he integrated so quickly with his teammates.

In addition to the impressive statistics about Nguyen Xuan Son, Berita Harian also surprisingly praised his integration into Vietnamese culture.

“Although he initially had difficulty with the climate in Vietnam, Xuan Son has now settled down with his wife and two sons. When he joined the national team, the striker felt very comfortable. He sang the Vietnamese national anthem, was welcomed by fans and smiled comfortably with his teammates. These are all things that surprise viewers.

It is too early to talk about Xuan Son's success, but it can be affirmed that this striker is Singapore's number 1 threat in the next 2 matches," emphasized the journalist of Berita Harian .

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Source: https://thanhnien.vn/truyen-thong-singapore-phan-tich-suc-manh-doi-tuyen-viet-nam-noi-bat-ngo-ve-xuan-son-185241223190925224.htm