Vietnam are one of the strongest title challengers at the ongoing ASEAN Mitsubishi Electric Cup™ 2024 and their main man in attack Nguyen Tien Linh has had a fine start to the competition, opening his account in their 4-1 Group B success against Laos.
Next up for the Golden Star Warriors is a clash against Indonesia, familiar opponents that they had faced in the semi-finals of the previous edition.
This is set to be the fourth competitive meeting between both teams this year having met at the group stage of the AFC Asian Cup in Qatar as well as twice at the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers, with Team Garuda winning all three of those recent fixtures.
“The Indonesian team has always been a respected rival. I am particularly impressed by the Indonesian people's passion for football, especially in the experiences of directly facing the Indonesian team at the FIFA World Cup qualifiers,” said Tien Linh.
“We have defeated them many times such as at the ASEAN Championship 2022 at My Dinh Stadium, but recently the results have not been good. Although they have brought a young squad, the strong fighting spirit makes Indonesia a very difficult opponent to defeat.”
🎦 #VIEvIDN 𝗛𝗜𝗚𝗛𝗟𝗜𝗚𝗛𝗧𝗦
— ASEAN United FC (@aseanutdfc) January 9, 2023
🇻🇳 Vietnam 2⃣-0️⃣ Indonesia 🇮🇩
The final hurdle to the final was passed by Nguyen Tien Linh's brace ⚽️⚽️
#AFFMitsubishiElectricCup2022 | #BeTheGameChanger pic.twitter.com/9AGCYIKaC2
That victory was Vietnam’s last win over Indonesia in which Tien Linh netted twice in the second leg to help Vietnam overcome the tough challenge and reach the final of the 2022 edition, which means the forward will have fond memories ahead of Sunday’s showdown.
Since that win, there is a general feeling that both these nations have been going in opposite directions with Indonesia joining Vietnam as being the only Southeast Asian nations to win a third round match of the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers, when they stole the headlines after stunning Saudi Arabia 2-0 at the Gelora Bung Karno Stadium less than a month ago.
In contrast, Vietnam came into this tournament with just one win in this calendar year with this competition providing them an opportunity to end the year on a positive note, and as such expectations are high amongst their supporters.
“The ASEAN Championship is the top tournament in Southeast Asia, gathering the best players from the top football countries in the region. In particular, the tradition of competition between countries in the region makes the value of the tournament even more special,” said Tien Linh, who is Vietnam’s third-highest goalscorer of all time.
“Vietnamese people are very passionate about football, always wanting the Vietnamese team to win this tournament. Therefore, every Vietnamese player always has the dream of competing and achieving success in the ASEAN Championship to bring joy to the fans.”
Apart from Laos and Indonesia, Vietnam also have the Philippines and Myanmar for company in an interesting-looking Group B with the match against Indonesia giving them the chance to go top of the group with a win.
The Golden Star Warriors will also have a change of flavour for their home matches this year at Viet Tri Stadium, located in the city of Phu Tho in Northern Vietnam as opposed to their more commonly used venue in the capital city of Hanoi. The aim is now to capitalise on that good start as they gear up to play in front of their home support for the first time.
“In the past, every time the Vietnamese team won against Laos in their opening match, they have reached the ASEAN Championship final. I really want to continue this interesting pattern to help the Vietnamese team reach the final and bring home another title,” reminded Tien Linh of the coincidence.
“The gap between the teams is getting narrower. Don't forget that Laos drew 1-1 with Thailand before the start of the tournament! Winning the championship is always our goal but it won't be easy because all opponents in this tournament are strong.
“To win the championship, we will have to overcome all opponents, whether it's Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines or any other team.”
Vietnam will take inspiration from their famous 2018 title triumph in what was Tien Linh’s first major senior international tournament and he contributed with a goal against Cambodia in the group stage.
They won the title unbeaten, overcoming Malaysia 3-2 on aggregate in the final with Nguyen Anh Duc scoring the decisive goal in the second leg with a talented crop of Vietnamese players who were coming of age and Tien Linh being one of those.
“I was very sad that I could not participate in the 2018 AFC U-23 Championship due to an injury. Therefore, I was eager to contribute more to the 2018 ASEAN Championship. That was a very special tournament when I scored my first goal for the Vietnamese senior team. The success in that tournament helped me gain a lot of confidence, adding motivation to succeed even more,” he recalled.
Since then, Vietnam have reached the quarter-finals of the AFC Asian Cup in 2019 when they famously knocked out Jordan in the Round of 16 followed by defeating China PR to script history by becoming the first Southeast Asian nation to win a third round FIFA World Cup Qualifiers match.
🔊 ꜱᴏᴜɴᴅ ᴏɴ
— #AsianQualifiers (@afcasiancup) February 1, 2022
😍 What Nguyen Tien Linh's goal meant to those in attendance at My Dinh Stadium!#AsianQualifiers | #VIEvCHN pic.twitter.com/NlgWLhBs76
Tien Linh was on target in that 3-1 in Hanoi against the Chinese as the nation rejoiced in a historic triumph. Now with the likes of Anh Duc and Nguyen Van Quyet having hung up their boots from national team duty, the onus is on the new batch to step up starting from the ASEAN Mitsubishi Electric Cup™ 2024.
“Football has always been about development and inheritance. I was lucky to experience the Vietnam team winning the ASEAN Championship with many talented senior players such as Anh Duc, [Nguyen] Cong Phuong, [Que] Ngoc Hai, [Do] Hung Dung, [Dang] Van Lam, [Doan] Van Hau, etc. After six years, those names are absent for many reasons,” he remarked.
“The current Vietnam team is a mixture of different generations of players, including several talented young players such as [Bui Hoang] Viet Anh, [Dinh] Thanh Binh, [Bui] Vi Hao, [Khuat] Van Khang and they will be the future of Vietnam football in the next few years. But one thing that has not changed is the desire to win and the strong spirit of solidarity between each position.”
It is now up to the more senior players to take on the mantle which includes Do Duy Manh, Nguyen Quang Hai, Nguyen Hoang Duc, Nguyen Van Toan and Tien Linh himself.
There is now a sense of responsibility amongst them in the camp to give back what they experienced during their formative period in 2018. The youngsters are living up to the billing, winning successive AFF U-23 Championships in 2022 and 2023, beating a much fancied Indonesia in last year’s final in Rayong.
“Our youngsters have already proven their abilities. In the near future, we will introduce many more interesting faces that will surprise everyone. They will be the secret gifts that we want to bring to the ASEAN Mitsubishi Electric Cup™ 2024. I myself, from a young player protected by my seniors six years ago, will now be ready to take on more responsibilities,” said Tien Linh, who captains his club side Becamex Binh Duong.
Park Hang-seo was one of the major factors behind the Vietnam football revolution with the Korean tactician departing after last edition’s defeat in the final to Thailand, and now his compatriot Kim Sang-sik is at the helm.
Forty-seven-year-old Kim has had success in his homeland as both a player and a head coach, winning a combined five K League 1 titles as a player with Seongnam FC and Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors before managing the latter to another league title in 2021 to prove his pedigree as a head coach.
“Fans expect the Vietnamese team to play with the 3-4-3 formation like Coach Park Hang-seo and recently Coach Kim Sang-sik has also applied the same. This is understandable because this formation has been deeply ingrained in the team's playing style and has proven to be suitable for the conditions of the Vietnamese people,” revealed Tien Linh.
“Mr. Kim is younger and represents a different generation of football than Mr. Park. Both have impressed with their dedicated way of working, constantly motivating players to work hard and building a foundation of playing style from collective strength.
“However, Mr. Kim has his own unique features, such as the way of applying the 3-4-3 formation with details different from Mr. Park, and who knows, maybe at the ASEAN Mitsubishi Electric Cup™ 2024 he will create a different approach.”
It is evident that the squad Kim Sang-sik has inherited is stacked with talent, with man management set to be a key factor in this tournament. Quang Hai, Van Toan, Pham Tuan Hai, Vi Hao and Nguyen Xuan Son — there are goals in this team everywhere you look!
But with 22 goals in 51 appearances, no one has a better goalscoring record than Tien Linh with the 27-year-old forward needing to play a starring role once again if they are to reach the final, like he did in the previous edition when he shared the Top Scorer accolade alongside the competition’s all-time highest marksman Teerasil Dangda.
However, the trophy ultimately eluded Vietnam in the end and this time with a star-studded cast they will aim to rewrite the history books by adding to the titles they won in 2008 and 2018, powered by their goal machine.
“Playing and scoring for the national team is always the dream of every player and so is mine. The pressure creates excitement for the strikers to hunt for goals. In 2022, I was partly satisfied when I won the Golden Boot with Teerasil.
“This time, I am willing to give up my personal title in exchange for the Vietnamese team’s third Southeast Asian championship in history. That will be my motivation.”
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