Son is still very 'Spring'!

K DIFFICULT START

The Singapore team has studied Nguyen Xuan Son's playing style very carefully. In the match on the evening of December 26 at Jalan Besar Stadium, coach Tsutomu Ogura always assigned center-back Lionel Tan to follow Xuan Son closely in every phase of the ball. With an ideal physique, the player wearing the number 15 shirt controlled the number 1 explosive player of the Vietnamese team quite well.

Son vẫn còn 'Xuân' lắm!- Ảnh 1. — Xuan Son shines to bring victory against Singapore

Being closely marked by his opponent, Xuan Son could hardly turn around to shoot, and his aerial battles were also less effective. At the same time, Singapore's defense also isolated Xuan Son from his teammates, proactively intercepting passes aimed at this striker.

Coupled with the artificial turf at Jalan Besar Stadium, it was very difficult for the Vietnamese team to control the ball. With only 31% possession, coach Kim Sang-sik's players had a difficult match. Xuan Son was starved for the ball, as he often had to receive the ball in a very difficult position. The striker born in 1997 only had one improvised hook that hit the crossbar when the opponent proactively raised the offside trap. The remaining satellites around him such as Vi Hao, Thanh Binh, Quang Hai could not create enough space for Xuan Son to roam.

Scoring 2 goals in injury time, Vietnam beat Singapore in a match with all VAR

VAR CANNOT STOP S ON

When VAR and referee Ko Kyung-jin denied Xuan Son's masterpiece because they thought the Vietnamese striker let the ball touch his hand, many people probably thought of the player wearing the number 12 shirt having a bad day.

However, stars of Xuan Son's caliber only need a moment to shine, although the 27-year-old striker had to wait until injury time to make his mark. In the 90+8 minute, he applied just enough pressure to make a Singapore defender fumble with his handball, earning a penalty which Tien Linh then converted. Xuan Son then ended Singapore's hopes himself with a close-range tap-in, sealing a 2-0 victory.

Son vẫn còn 'Xuân' lắm!- Ảnh 2. — Number 12 and number 22 bring a great match for Vietnam

It cannot be said that Xuan Son had a brilliant match, with the difficulties he overcame. However, he only needed a split second for his own happy day. But to have that split second, Xuan Son made a huge effort. Just like the match against Myanmar, Xuan Son made an effort to escape the siege of the Singapore defenders. He ran, drifted to the sidelines, fought, moved to attract people and did everything he could to light up the Vietnamese attack on Jalan Besar field.

Xuan Son's passion warmed up the "cold" attack of ideas that coach Kim Sang-sik and his team demonstrated throughout the 90 minutes against Singapore. That is the spirit of never giving up that Mr. Kim always wants from his students. Let's fight until the last minute.

In a few days at Viet Tri stadium, I believe Xuan Son will continue to torment Singapore's defense.