Former player Manh Dung: 'Thanh Binh was foolish to use tricks'

According to former center-back Nguyen Manh Dung, Vietnamese players are too used to tricks in the V-League, so they easily make mistakes when playing internationally, the most recent being Nguyen Thanh Binh's foul that led to a penalty at the 2023 Asian Cup.

Center-back Nguyen Thanh Binh (No. 6) in the match where Vietnam lost 0-1 to Indonesia at the 2023 Asian Cup. Photo: Lam Thoa — Center-back Nguyen Thanh Binh (No. 6) in the match where Vietnam lost 0-1 to Indonesia at the 2023 Asian Cup. Photo: *Lam Thoa*

- As a former central defender who played for many years in the top level of Vietnamese football, what do you think about the situation where central defender Nguyen Thanh Binh pulled Rafael Struick's shirt, leading to the penalty that gave Indonesia the only goal in the second round of Group D on the evening of January 19 ?

- I don't need to analyze, the whole world also feels that Thanh Binh is too foolish. I don't like to criticize players, and have even defended them many times. Typical examples are Do Duy Manh or Doan Van Hau in the past. After situations of fouls or dirty play, I always send messages to remind and advise.

Thanh Binh once made a fatal mistake in the 2022 World Cup qualifiers - Asia region, but then he improved in his skills and had the will to strive. However, this time Thanh Binh was foolish in a split second. He, like many Vietnamese players, needs to remember that football now has VAR, when going on the field, he must keep in mind that every foul situation will be scrutinized. Thanh Binh made a mistake like that, no one can save him.

Indonesia leads Vietnam 1-0 — Vietnam's loss to Indonesia.

- Before Thanh Binh, Vietnamese players also made many incomprehensible mistakes like that in continental tournaments. What do you think is the cause?

- Perhaps, they are too familiar with the V-League environment, where such fouls are rarely penalized, so they continue to commit them in big arenas. That is a big negative effect of the V-League. Part of the reason is that football managers and bosses are too powerful, indulgent with players. Some teams are so influential that their players play dirty but the referees do not dare to penalize them. Therefore, players keep playing dirty, playing dirty, then become spoiled, lazy and use tricks as a habit.

- But clearly, in football in particular and competitive sports in general, tricks cannot be completely eliminated?

- I used to be a central defender, having played for The Cong, HAGL and the national team for many years, so I understand this. I must also admit that I use a lot of tricks, but I have to know how to do it so that no one knows and punishes me. In my entire career, I only received two yellow cards, one for stopping a player in a one-on-one match and one for wasting time. The rest, I use tricks but no one knows to punish me, so I should use them. But now, when Vietnamese players use tricks, the audience knows, let alone the referee and VAR.

Vietnamese central defenders today lack many factors. Que Ngoc Hai and Do Duy Manh are well-trained but lack cunning. In the past, when we played football on the field, if we missed a goal, we would go home feeling embarrassed and had to practice again and again to make up for the embarrassment. Only then can we gain experience, endurance and a firm stance against all opponents.

Nguyen Manh Dung is a famous Vietnamese central defender, who played for The Cong, HAGL and many years on the national team.

- In your opinion, if there was no penalty, could the match between Vietnam and Indonesia have changed?

- I didn't say that after the result, but after the first 10 minutes, I was very worried and thought that Vietnam would only draw or lose in this match. Because I saw that Indonesia had made great progress. They made progress not only thanks to naturalized players. Obviously, they chose naturalized players but not to have enough players but to choose suitable factors for the playing style that coach Shin Tae-young built.

Vietnamese and Indonesian football have a lot of fate. In the past, when they met, Indonesia often chose to play in a domineering, brutal style to restrain Vietnam's technical style. But in recent years, they have changed their way of playing football. They no longer play in a martial style but instead show a flexible, cunning style to promote efficiency. On the contrary, Vietnam lacks alertness and handles things incorrectly. To be honest, if we don't lose to Indonesia now, we will soon lose at another time because they have improved a lot. Overall, Indonesia played very well in this match and deserved to win, even winning big if they had finished more sharply.

- Vietnam was eliminated early, but in your opinion, what did coach Philippe Troussier gain from this tournament?

- I see a lot of people criticizing Troussier for not calling up familiar, famous players. Even calling them up is just to cheer on the younger players. But that criticism is wrong. Because there are old players, with a bunch of titles and names, who always show a superficial spirit when joining the national team. Which coach can accept that?

The coach's view is to select players based on their form. That means you have to be dedicated and hard-working in training. Of course, there are some world teams that make exceptions for players, but they are top stars and do not need much training.

As for Vietnamese players, they must have a high team spirit and diligence, then the coach will choose them. Troussier is also an employee, he also wants to choose the best chess pieces to play with results. No one chooses a bad player, a player with poor form, which will affect their position. Therefore, I think he was right in choosing players and building a football philosophy that suits the current people. Young players have made progress, their thinking about playing football has changed. I see in the new players a desire, enthusiasm and good spirit. Therefore, tournaments like this will give them more experience to avoid making unnecessary mistakes like the past.