Tien Linh alone 'weighs' foreign strikers

Tien Linh solo

The race for the V-League top scorer has long been a private affair for foreign players. Out of the 21 seasons since 2003, there have been 20 seasons where foreign strikers have topped the scoring list. The only exception was in the 2017 season, when Nguyen Anh Duc (now head coach of Binh Phuoc FC) scored 17 goals for Binh Duong FC, more than any other foreign player.

In the last 4 seasons, the top scorer title has been shared equally between Rimario Gordon (2020, 2022) and Rafaelson (2023, 2023 - 2024), a player who has just been naturalized in Vietnam with the name Nguyen Xuan Son.

However, this season, domestic players can regain their position in the goal race. Besides Nguyen Xuan Son, who has now become a domestic striker, Nguyen Tien Linh has risen strongly, with 6 goals in just the first 6 matches of the season. The striker born in 1997 is second in the list of top scorers. With 6 goals like Artur, but Tien Linh is behind due to having fewer assists.

Tien Linh scored a double against HAGL

Tien Linh not only scores regularly, but his goals are also important. The 27-year-old striker's double helped Binh Duong defeat strong opponent Thanh Hoa (2-1) in the opening match. Then, Tien Linh scored again, helping coach Hoang Anh Tuan's team keep 1 point at home against Hai Phong in round 2. After contributing to Binh Duong's 3-0 victory over Ho Chi Minh City (round 4), Tien Linh continued to make his mark with a double, creating the premise for the Thu team to turn the tables, defeating HAGL with a score of 4-1.

"To me, Tien Linh is no different from a foreign player," Coach Hoang Anh Tuan shared after the victory over HAGL on November 2. In the previous match against The Cong Viettel, Mr. Tuan also emphasized that even though there were matches where he did not score, Tien Linh still played well, contributed to the gameplay, and demonstrated his leadership role...

Breakthrough opportunity

Tien Linh is one of the best domestic strikers in the V-League in recent years. The 2018 season witnessed the peak of the striker from Hai Duong, when he scored 15 goals, becoming the domestic top scorer.

From 2019 until now, despite being a main player in the Vietnam national team, Tien Linh has never surpassed the 15-goal mark.

Tien Linh is the main striker of Binh Duong Club this season.

During the period when coach Le Huynh Duc was in charge, Tien Linh was paired with Rimario. It seemed that the "gun barrel" Rimario - Tien Linh would help Binh Duong score goals regularly, but being pulled back to play as an attacking midfielder made it difficult for the 27-year-old striker. He could not promote his strength in choosing a finishing position in the penalty area, when he had to drop back to connect the play and support his teammates. At the end of the 2023 season, Tien Linh only had 3 goals. Although not long before, the 27-year-old striker won the AFF Cup 2022 top scorer title with 6 goals with the Vietnamese team.

However, Tien Linh has significantly improved his scoring performance. This is the first time in his career that Mr. Hoang Anh Tuan's student has achieved an average of 1 goal/match. This comes from two reasons: Tien Linh has trained to improve his scoring skills, becoming more versatile and sharper in running, heading and connecting the play.

At the same time, Tien Linh was placed in the main striker role. That is his difference compared to other domestic strikers. Instead of playing back or moving to the wing to make room for foreign strikers, Tien Linh became the destination of decisive passes.

Coach Hoang Anh Tuan wants to create an all-domestic attack line with Tien Linh, Nguyen Tran Viet Cuong, Nguyen Thanh Nhan, Bui Vi Hao, in which Tien Linh is both the main scorer and plays the role of leading his teammates.

The attacking style of play that coach Hoang Anh Tuan wants to build is also a favorable launching pad for Tien Linh to compete equally for the top scorer title with Leo Artur, Alan Grafite (Hanoi Police Club), Hendrio Araujo, Nguyen Xuan Son (Nam Dinh Club) or Lucao do Break (Hai Phong Club).

FPT Play - The only unit to broadcast the entire LPBank V.League 1-2024/25, at https://fptplay.vn

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/vua-pha-luoi-v-league-mot-minh-tien-linh-can-dan-tien-dao-ngoai-185241104113954114.htm