Vietnam to lose in World Cup 2022 qualifiers and AFF Cup 2020 because of their conservatism

Football is temporarily postponded due to the impact of Covid 19 pandemic. ASEAN tournaments are likely to be delayed until May or later, which then might cause the density of competitions at the end of year. Vietnam, however, could face the toughest challenge among other countries. They will have to qualify for the World Cup qualifiers and defend their championship in AFF Cup.

The biggest target of Thailand is in the continental tournament. They don’t focus on winning AFF Cup 2020, even FAT thought of sending their U23 team to reduce the stress for the senior team and concentrate on World Cup. Indonesia and Malaysia are the same. They have less pressure as their fans don’t expect too much on AFF Cup Championship.

Meanwhile Vietnam supporters are waiting for the successful defense of their championship which is not less important than the World Cup 2022 qualification. Park Hang-seo’ army, thereby, must fight hard in both tournaments that might be held at the same time.

But the most important thing that can make Vietnam fail in both tournaments is their conservatism in using players. When Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and the UAE actively get quality naturalized players, the Vietnamese team still says no, even if their team is facing a lot of difficulties in terms of force.

Vietnam has many excellent naturalized players playing in the V-League including Hoang Vu Samson. If this striker plays for the national team, their strength will be very formidable. Park Hang-seo will have to seek young faces if necessary.

Among Southeast Asian countries, naturalized players all play an irreplaceable role in their squad. Vietnam's upcoming opponent in World Cup is Malaysia who has four naturalized stars in the main team including striker Mohamadou Sumareh, Matthew Davies (24, Australian), left-back La'Vere Corbin-Ong (28, British) and midfielder Brendan Gan (31, Australian).

Malaysian Football Federation (FAM) confirmed the successful naturalization of Johor Darul Ta'zim midfielder Liridon Krasnniqi.  FAM is rushing to complete procedures for Lee Tuck (Brazilian). In addition, coach Tan Cheng Hoe himself also aimed at another name is De Paula (British).

Thus, the Malaysian team will most likely use up to seven naturalized players in the main squad to face the Vietnamese team in the 2022 World Cup qualifiers. This is such an effective way to boost their power just in s short time.

The Vietnamese team is leading Group G in the 2022 World Cup qualifiers after 5 matches. They won 11 points with 3 wins and 2 draws. The army of Park Hang-seo is holding their fate but they are also the most challenged team.

Vietnam is scheduled to travel to the Bukit Jalil Stadium in Malaysia, which is considered a tough place for all teams. The most obvious evidence is Thailand’s defeat, while the UAE struggled to win a minimum score.