'King of throw-ins' Arhan and his hands that the Vietnamese national team had to study: Who is he?

All of Asia is a 'victim' of Arhan

In just two matches at the 2024 AFF Cup, Arhan directly contributed to two goals for the Indonesian national team with his throw-ins. In the match against Myanmar, his throw-in caused chaos in the opposing defense, creating an opportunity for Asnawi Mangkualam to successfully score the only goal of the match. In the match against Laos, Arhan's throw-ins were so effective that they completely bypassed the Laotian defense, allowing Ferrari to score with just a light touch of the ball.

Arhan instilled fear with his throw-ins.

Since the beginning of 2024, Arhan has contributed 4 goals for the Indonesian national team from throw-ins. In the third round of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, the left-back's "victims" even included strong teams with tall defensive players such as Japan and China. When he played for Tokyo Verdy, a team currently competing in the J1 League, Arhan also had a throw-in that led to a goal.

Vietnamese football fans are also very familiar with Arhan's throw-ins. In the semi-final of the 32nd SEA Games in Cambodia against the Vietnam U22 team, this defender indirectly helped Marselino Ferdinand score a goal. Later, in the match between Indonesia and Vietnam at the Gelora Bung Karno Stadium in the second round of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, Arhan's throw-in caught Vo Minh Trong off guard, creating an opportunity for Egy Maulana to easily tap the ball into the net from close range.

The Vietnamese team needs to be cautious.

Upon closer observation and analysis, Arhan's throw-in mostly lands in the near corner. In such positions, the opposing defense is often confused when trying to clear the ball. If the goalkeeper and defenders cannot stop it, the ball will fly straight into the net. The second scenario is that the ball will bounce but remain within or on the edge of the penalty area, and Indonesian players will immediately contest and attempt a rebound. Because the force from a throw-in is not as strong as from a free kick, and headers to clear the ball don't have the same powerful rebound, the ball is unlikely to fly far. That's the difficulty of throw-ins.

Therefore, the Vietnamese team can study and arrange personnel appropriately, focusing on aerial duels at close range. At the same time, other players need to be ready to receive second balls to promptly prevent follow-up shots from the Indonesian team.

The Laotian defense was caught off guard after Arhan's throw-in and conceded a goal.

Indeed, throw-ins are a very dangerous weapon for Arhan. Before the match against Indonesia, center-back Bui Tien Dung stated that the Vietnamese team had a plan to limit the danger from these throw-ins. But besides that, we also need to analyze other strengths of this player. However, this player also has other strengths. He is a quality left-back, possessing speed, technique, and good attacking ability. When in possession of the ball in the opponent's third of the field, he can deliver quality crosses and low passes.

At the 2024 AFF Cup, coach Shin Tae-yong even boldly deployed Arhan on the opposite wing at times. When defending the right flank, Arhan tended to move into the center to support his teammates in attacking, controlling the ball, and influencing the game. In this role, he played as an inverted wingback. This is a similar personnel use to Pep Guardiola's decision to have Joao Cancelo, a right-footed defender, play as a left-back. This approach proved highly effective and even elevated Cancelo's game.

Overall, Arhan not only has dangerous throw-ins but also many other strengths that coach Kim Sang-sik and his team should be wary of.

The ASEAN Mitsubishi Electric Cup 2024 will be broadcast live and in its entirety onFPT Play, at: http://fptplay.vn

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/vua-nem-bien-arhan-va-doi-tay-khien-doi-tuyen-viet-nam-phai-nghien-cuu-anh-la-ai-185241214094502073.htm