CLASSY PERFORMANCE
Xuan Son won the title of "Best Player of the Tournament" and "Top Scorer" at the AFF Cup 2024, despite only playing 5 matches. The history of Southeast Asian football has never recorded a more impressive debut. Nguyen Xuan Son only needed 5 matches to convince everyone, making those who do not follow the Vietnamese team regularly admire him because a "brown-skinned, black-eyed Vietnamese" has helped the country's football become famous after nearly 2 years of ups and downs.
Xuan Son shines at AFF Cup 2024
The striker born in 1997 has everything the Vietnamese team has been looking for over the years: a classy and versatile striker who can score, create, create a wall, connect the play, with a seemingly endless source of energy and passion. It only took 2 weeks of training to integrate perfectly with the Vietnamese team, then 2 more weeks of competition to carry the team to the top of Southeast Asia, what Xuan Son has done has exceeded the expectations of experts, to the point that coach Kim Sang-sik had to say that "if there is anything that is not complete, it is probably that I have not been able to celebrate the championship with Xuan Son".
Coach Kim Sang-sik: 'The thing I regret the most is not being able to wear the conical hat to celebrate with Xuan Son'
Xuan Son becomes an important part of Vietnamese football
Photo: Nhat Bac
Before Xuan Son, Vietnamese football had never recorded any naturalized player wearing the national team jersey in an official tournament. The prejudice barrier against players of foreign origin had been simmering for many years, like an unwritten rule preventing naturalized stars from stepping onto the national team's threshold. However, Xuan Son came and broke the rules. Because he had class, love for Vietnam and a desire to contribute to the national team jersey. Not every naturalized player has all the elements like "Mr. Ta" Xuan Son, who every afternoon takes his wife and children to the market to buy banana cakes. Xuan Son loves Vietnam, loves singing the national anthem and every time he enters the field, he burns like a "torch" to contribute to the place that gave him the second spring of his career.
With such a brilliant performance, Xuan Son will pave the way for naturalized players to wear the Vietnamese national team jersey. Fans and experts have had a typical example to understand that every player should be given a chance, regardless of their origin, as long as they have enough qualifications and desire. A naturalized player can love Vietnam as much as any Vietnamese, and bring professional quality that is difficult for any native player to match at this time.
NEED BALANCED SOLUTION
The success of Xuan Son, or before that of Dang Van Lam or Nguyen Filip, will inspire the Vietnamese team to have new resources. Jason Quang Vinh and Hendrio Araujo are waiting to be naturalized, or Victor Le, Adou Minh... are all potential options, which coach Kim Sang-sik can refer to once they complete the paperwork. This is a source of players that the world has long exploited. The Vietnamese team should approach with a more open mind.
We are the perfect warriors
However, naturalization is not the only way. Vietnamese football still needs to stand on its own two feet, and youth training cannot be neglected. Expert Doan Minh Xuong commented: "We need a comprehensive player development strategy for goals such as reaching the 2027 Asian Cup or the 2030 World Cup. Naturalization is good, but it should only be applied to positions that are lacking, and should not be abused. The core of the Vietnamese team must still be building a framework of talented native players, focusing on training young players and the next generation. When naturalizing, it is also necessary to carefully calculate whether that position is really needed, whether the naturalized player has enough desire to contribute, can learn Vietnamese and understand Vietnamese football culture or not."
The victory at the AFF Cup 2024 has given the Vietnamese team a favorable psychological springboard. The spirit and morale of Vietnam have returned, but all of that is just at the tip of the iceberg. The roots of Vietnamese football cannot be solved with only naturalized players like Xuan Son. But let's take a closer look: Coach Kim Sang-sik won the AFF Cup mainly with old faces, who will pass their peak in just a few years. The mark of young players is faint.
Coach Kim Sang-sik also emphasized in an interview with Thanh Nien that the first thing he will do after the AFF Cup 2024 is to continue going to the football field to look for "rough diamonds" - young faces to continue the Vietnam team. "They are the future of Vietnam football, so we have to polish them and create opportunities," Mr. Kim affirmed. Only when the naturalization of players and youth training are harmonized, will the Vietnam team have a solid squad for major tournaments.
Source: https://thanhnien.vn/dieu-ky-dieu-nhat-xuan-son-lam-duoc-tai-aff-cup-185250107225624514.htm
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