Mai Duc Chung: A fulfilling career

C SIMPLE BUT EFFECTIVE BALLOON

Mr. Mai Duc Chung was born in 1949 in Hanoi. Unlike many players of his time, Mr. Chung started his career quite late. He studied at Tu Son University of Physical Education and Sports and, as usual, when he graduated in 1971 (at the age of 22), he would have gone to teach or coach football. But the student who had just graduated did not "join" the Hanoi Departmentof Education but "took" a very important turning point in his life: becoming a player. From here, a great journey opened up.

Striker Mai Duc Chung (standing row, sixth from left) in the shirt of the General Department of Railways team that won the national championship in 1980.

PHOTO: DOCUMENT

Mr. Mai Duc Chung was nicknamed Chung "xe ca", because he started his career in the Hanoi Van Manufacturing Enterprise team. But it was only when he moved to the General Department of Railways that Mr. Chung's career reached its peak. "At that time, the General Department of Railways had many talented players such as Le Thuy Hai, Le Khac Chinh... each with their own strengths, handling things very strangely, but the strength of the team lay in the collective spirit", coach Mai Duc Chung recalled.

At the Railway General Department team, Mr. Chung received a subsidized salary. He went to work during the day and went to practice in the afternoon. Sometimes, he could only practice once every few days (in those days, practicing 3 or 4 times a week was considered a lot), but the players still worked hard with the ball. "It was very hard, but we were aware of our responsibility to ourselves. We worked and fought to serve the Fatherland, and we played football to serve the people," said Mr. Chung.

To catch the eye of a strong team like the General Department of Railways, Mr. Mai Duc Chung must have been very special. At that time, every player had one or a few "tricks" to make a brand. While most of his teammates were small, striker Mai Duc Chung had a large stature. Large but extremely skillful. He played football simply but effectively, minimizing unnecessary movements. Thanks to his very basic, neat and sharp handling, he was flexibly used by coach Tran Duy Long in many positions, the most famous of which was the role of striker. Striker Mai Duc Chung's tactical thinking and football vision were accumulated after years of studying at school, and... learning from talented teammates at the General Department of Railways.

Player Mai Duc Chung celebrates winning the national A1 championship in 1980.

PHOTO: DOCUMENT

Mr. Chung sometimes penetrated the penalty area like a "bomber", using his height to bravely head the ball, sometimes shielding the ball to open the way for his teammates, and sometimes retreating to the midfield to control the ball reasonably and gently. "I will never forget the days of playing on a hard pitch, wearing studded shoes, sometimes getting studs stuck back into my feet and causing bleeding. However, everyone on the team was willing to overcome all challenges because of their burning passion. In addition to their love of football, we also had very good skills to deal with difficulties," Mr. Chung recalled. He was attached to the General Department of Railways team for 9 years as a locomotive leader, scoring in a historic friendly match between football from the North and South, when he and the General Department of Railways defeated Saigon Port with a score of 2-0 in November 1976.

Coach Mai Duc Chung RAISING THE LEVEL OF VIETNAMESE WOMEN'S FOOTBALL

Mr. Mai Duc Chung hung up his boots in 1984, ending his football career with the peak of winning the national A1 championship in 1980. From here, Mr. Chung's life, as well as the history of Vietnamese football, took a new turn. With the prestige he had built in the General Department of Railways team, Mr. Mai Duc Chung was appointed as head coach. At that time, Mr. Chung had the scientific management experience he had gained from his teacher Tran Duy Long, along with his gentle, kind, and flexible way of dealing with people that had become his trademark. Coach Mai Duc Chung led the General Department of Railways team until the team was dissolved in 1999.

The Vietnamese women's team has achieved great success thanks to the guidance of coach Mai Duc Chung (middle).

Coach Mai Duc Chung and captain Huynh Nhu were happy when the Vietnamese women's team won tickets to the 2023 World Cup.

PHOTO: DOCUMENT

However, before that, in 1997, Vietnamese audiences were very surprised when the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) appointed Mr. Mai Duc Chung to concurrently lead the Vietnamese women's team. He had not played women's football at that time, but was chosen because of his ingenuity and thoughtfulness. In his first time leading the women's team at the age of 48, Mr. Chung led his students to win a bronze medal at the 19th SEA Games in 1997 in Indonesia. And then, in the following 2 decades, Coach Mai Duc Chung became the person chosen by Vietnamese football history to take Vietnamese women's football to new heights. The Vietnamese women's team under "General" Chung won 6 SEA Games gold medals, 1 Southeast Asian championship in 2019, and a ticket to the 2023 Women's World Cup.

Under the training and caring hands of a teacher who is also like a father, Mr. Chung has built the Vietnamese women's team into a strong collective, a united block, with no more conflicts between players from one team and another. Once an assistant to coach Alfred Riedl in the Vietnamese team, Mr. Chung admitted that he learned a lot from the Austrian coach. Coach Mai Duc Chung said that one of the factors he learned from Mr. Riedl was strictness, fairness, and respect for players. "Each player has their own personality, their own self-respect, so it is necessary to know when to meet a player to talk, when to encourage, and when to criticize. Female players are very sensitive and vulnerable, so the head coach must behave skillfully and fairly." Coach Mai Duc Chung's vision and heart are shown in his brave heart, with a "velvet-covered iron hand". Gentle but determined. He is given a new name, Mr. Chung "girl" because of his gentle behavior.

The sincere smile of coach Mai Duc Chung

In 2017, when the Vietnamese team was in crisis and needed someone to "put out the fire", Mr. Chung did not hesitate to jump into the fire, even though many people, including his old friend Le Thuy Hai, advised him not to risk his reputation. "I am a party member. When the organization needs me, I will be there. If everyone is afraid of difficulties, where will we find people to do it?", Mr. Chung affirmed. At a time when the team was under a lot of pressure, there was still "general" Chung at the forefront, helping his students overcome difficulties. Coach Mai Duc Chung's heart moved the players. Before the second leg match against Cambodia in the 2019 Asian Cup qualifiers in October 2017, captain Van Quyet of the Vietnamese team once said that everyone would burn themselves out for "father Chung". Heaven does not disappoint those who try. Mr. Chung and his students won both temporary matches, contributing greatly to the ticket to the 2019 Asian Cup. Mr. Chung is still brave and courageous, just like the striker of nearly 50 years ago, jumping high to head the ball through the air in the most special match in the history of Vietnamese football.

At the age of 76, Mr. Chung has it all. A brilliant coaching career with a series of championships, medals, certificates of merit, and the proud title of "Hero of Labor". He enjoys happiness in his home on Ngoc Ha Street (Hanoi) with his hard-working wife Ngoc Uyen. It seemed that Mr. Chung's relationship with football had ended, but in May 2024, Coach Mai Duc Chung suddenly returned, leading the Vietnamese women's team while the team was lacking a "captain" of sufficient caliber. (to be continued)

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/mai-duc-chung-su-nghiep-vien-man-185250422213121107.htm