Coach Troussier wants to reduce the proportion of goals scored from free kicks
Both of Vietnam's goals in the match at Viet Tri Stadium on the evening of September 12 were scored from set pieces. The first was the opening goal in the 12th minute, from a penalty kick by Nguyen Dinh Bac. Next was a corner kick for Nguyen Huu Nam to score to increase the score to 2-1 in the 77th minute.
After the match, Coach Troussier admitted that in this match Vietnam controlled the ball 85% but the players could not find the correct ball handling options in open ball situations. He emphasized that the two goals coming from penalty kicks and corners reflect the current situation of Vietnamese football, when clubs expect fixed balls or high balls with tall players.
"Fixed situations are the strong point of Vietnamese football. But it is necessary to expand the scope of implementation and be better, but at the same time reduce the proportion," said the French coach. "This also reflects domestic football, goals come from fixed situations, or wait for the excellence of foreign players. This cannot be improved overnight. My goal is to make the team better, play better. Being fair with opponents, this requires playing better, having more goals from open situations."
Before this match, Vietnam won an early ticket to the 2024 U23 Asian finals, thanks to a 6-0 victory over Guam and 1-0 victory over Yemen. Therefore, coach Troussier gave many opportunities to reserve players, retaining only three players in the main squad compared to the last match: defender Ngoc Thang, midfielder Thai Son and Hoang Van Toan.
With a comfortable mentality, the team dominated, created many opportunities and took the lead twice. However, Coach Troussier's students still made mistakes, allowing Singapore to equalize twice. Asked about this overly open playing style, the 68-year-old strategist said that the result was not the goal he set for this match, and that having already won a ticket to the next round made many players lose their determination, spirit and participation. lack of concentration at decisive moments.
He added: "I don't blame the players, because the goal of winning tickets to the next round has been achieved, they can all play. This is also a lesson, you can control the ball well but you have to play more lethally. score more goals. This is also a lesson for me. In this match, I let the players play more freely than usual. Playing like this, the players need to be more accurate in their decisions. This match is just not enough. Stop".
