Is Mr. Kim worried?

The defeat against SLNA in the "reverse final" match at the end of the first leg pushed Hai Phong Club down to 13th place in V-League 2024 - 2025. With only 12 points, only 1 point more than the bottom team Da Nang, Nguyen Dinh Trieu and his teammates face a tough challenge of staying in the league this season.

Since coach Chu Dinh Nghiem took over the coaching position at Lach Tray Stadium, this is the worst season for Hai Phong Club. The port city team finished second in the 2022 V-League after a thrilling race with Hanoi Club. In the 2023 season, Hai Phong was in the championship race in the second phase, eventually finishing in 6th place. In the 2023 - 2024 season, Hai Phong ranked 7th, down 1 place but still an acceptable achievement.

However, this season, the situation has become more difficult for Dinh Trieu and his teammates. Hai Phong FC has only won 2 out of 13 first-leg matches (against HAGL and Ho Chi Minh City FC with the same score of 2-0). The port city team still has the controlling style of play that Mr. Chu Dinh Nghiem has created over the past 3 years. However, the poor quality of foreign players, lack of young players, and the constant change of domestic players every season have made Hai Phong increasingly unstable.

In recent years, Hai Phong FC has often fallen into a situation of "sweeping away the scraps", having to use players from many teams. Among them, there are only a few cases that play well such as Dinh Trieu, Trieu Viet Hung, Luong Hoang Nam. Most of Hai Phong's patchwork and... frugal contracts do not promote their value.

The thin and weak force makes Hai Phong Club like a narrow blanket, covering the head but exposing the feet, or vice versa.

Highlight SLNA Club 1-0 Hai Phong Club | Round 13 V-League 2024-2025

Coach Kim Sang-sik is having a hard time thinking.

The positive sign is that despite playing for a struggling team, Dinh Trieu still maintains his form. Like a "lotus in the mud", the 34-year-old goalkeeper is still in the top 5 goalkeepers with the best saves, passes, and blocks in V-League. Playing for a team with a weak defense like Hai Phong FC is also an opportunity for Dinh Trieu to improve, as he constantly has to face opposing strikers.

However, coach Kim Sang-sik may need to recalculate the goalkeeper position. Dinh Trieu rarely makes mistakes, but having to play for a team that loses more than wins like Hai Phong FC threatens to limit the development potential and affect the mentality of the 1991-born goalkeeper.

The stature of the Hai Phong team does not allow Dinh Trieu to reach international club level tournaments. He also does not have the conditions to practice weekly with good teammates to play better. In other words, Dinh Trieu is very good, but he has "hit his ceiling", only suitable for the Southeast Asian playground.

To go further, coach Kim Sang-sik needs goalkeepers with more basic skills and experience like Nguyen Filip and Dang Van Lam, or younger ones to train like Tran Trung Kien (HAGL) or Doan Huy Hoang (The Cong Viettel). Filip is also declining, but the goalkeeper born in 1992 has been trained properly, has enough experience and courage after years of playing in Europe. The participation of the Hanoi Police Club in the Southeast Asian Cup C1 also helps Nguyen Filip constantly compete with opponents in the region, something that Dinh Trieu did not have when playing for Hai Phong.

Goalkeeper Van Lam is also a potential candidate, as he and Ninh Binh Club can soon win the first division championship to return to V-League. Van Lam is still training well. He hired a personal trainer to maintain his fitness and improve his skills, and at the same time knows how to filter out opportunities to make his mark, such as the excellent save to help Ninh Binh overcome two opponents in the National Cup (both on penalties).

The race in the Vietnam team will be very exciting.

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Source: https://thanhnien.vn/thu-mon-gioi-nhat-aff-cup-2024-phai-dua-tru-hang-ong-kim-co-ban-khoan-18525022112525429.htm