Vietnam team wins boringly, coach Kim Sang-sik is full of worries

Vietnam 2-1 Cambodia

The Vietnamese team was awarded 2.72 points in the FIFA rankings after the win over Cambodia. This number does not mean much at the moment, when no major tournaments are about to draw groups. The 2-1 score is not enough to satisfy the fans.

However, the victory over Cambodia - the team ranked 180/210 in the world - is not meaningless for the Vietnamese team.

Even when facing a much weaker team like Cambodia, the Vietnamese team still showed some weaknesses. Television viewers often saw coach Kim Sang-sik's dissatisfied expression, especially in the second half.

The Vietnamese team faced many difficulties against Cambodia.

The impact of Nguyen Xuan Son’s absence on the Vietnamese team was predicted in advance. The two matches at Binh Duong Stadium last night (March 19) were a practical proof. The Vietnamese team did not create much of a threat to the opponent’s defense.

Coach Kim Sang-sik did not choose a striker to directly replace Xuan Son. Nguyen Quang Hai was the player who started at the top of the attack. However, according to the development of the game, number 19 often dropped back to receive the ball and coordinate. The Vietnamese team played with a formation more like 3-5-2 than 3-4-3.

Without a true striker, the Vietnamese team's formation did not move forward in sync to create pressure. Rarely did the home team push their opponents deep into the penalty area and create opportunities. When Nguyen Tien Linh, Chau Ngoc Quang and Truong Tien Anh entered the field in the second half, the situation did not improve much.

The ability to impose itself on "underdog" opponents seems to be the weakness of the Vietnamese team. Cambodia is a suitable target for coach Kim Sang-sik and his students to practice for the upcoming match against Laos. The information that the Korean coach gained from this dull victory is that the attacking options he tried were not effective.

The 2-1 victory over Cambodia did not satisfy Vietnamese fans.

The attack was not impressive enough but still scored a goal. The detail that made coach Kim Sang-sik worried after the match was related to the defense issue. "In the second half, when the pressure increased, we had problems in neutralizing Cambodia's attacks," the Korean coach said at a press conference.

The goal that Vietnam conceded came from a long-range shot. Since the start of the 2024 AFF Cup, Vietnam has conceded 7 goals, 4 of which were from outside the penalty area.

In these situations (Singapore 1 goal, Thailand 2 goals, Cambodia 1 goal), the opponent did not create pressure. The Vietnamese team's defense simply did not have enough necessary cover in the dangerous area before the penalty area.

Against weaker opponents, the Vietnamese team's defense is good enough to ensure safety, eliminating the opportunity for opponents to cause danger in the penalty area. However, the defenders and midfielders need to be alert to threats from afar. The "underdog" teams sometimes only need such a moment to succeed.