Vietnam – Myanmar: Calculating for the AFF Cup semi-final
* Vietnam – Myanmar: 19:30 Tuesday 3/1, on MetaSports.
History records Vietnam's overwhelming achievement against Myanmar with seven wins and two draws in the last 10 matches of the national team. Even when Vietnam weakened in the period 2010-2017, Myanmar has never been more appreciated. Currently, the quality of the squad, the spirit of the players and the preparation for the match at My Dinh are also in favor of the host.
Vietnam has been a candidate for the championship with Thailand and Indonesia from the very beginning. Meanwhile, because many domestic instability prevented good players from joining the national team, Myanmar had to use a squad with many young players. Before today's match, the away team also lost two more pillars, defender Nanda Kyaw and striker Maung Maung Lwin. After three unbeaten matches and won seven points, Vietnam is almost certain to enter the semi-finals, while Myanmar has officially been eliminated due to only one point.
Besides, Vietnam can also be physically fit thanks to the rotation of the squad by replacing eight main kick positions in the 0-0 draw with Singapore compared to the 3-0 victory over Malaysia. Coach Park Hang-seo seems to be intentionally keeping the elite team when he has to play on artificial grass at Jalan Besar - where home striker Ilhan Fandi injured his knee after a wrong landing phase.
The Singapore draw also gives Vietnam the right to choose an opponent if they want. Thailand and Indonesia are both difficult to play, but in this tournament, the team of thousands of islands has a good force with a more energetic performance. To meet Thailand, Vietnam only needs to be second in the table. If the team wins this opponent, the team also has an additional advantage of being able to play the final second leg at home on January 16. But perhaps, Coach Park does not count like that.
Even without many good players, Thailand is still scoring the most goals - 13 goals - in the group stage of the AFF Cup 2022, and is always a fierce opponent with Vietnam. The lesson of losing the top of the table at the AFF Cup 2021 in the last turn and then losing to Thailand in the semi-finals made Coach Park not feel comfortable every time he repeated it. Before the match against Myanmar, the Korean coach affirmed that Vietnam must win to take the first place, and at the same time, create a spiritual momentum for a happy 2023.
Coach Park's calculation lies more in keeping the strongest force for the semi-finals. Yesterday, Indonesia lost number 1 goalkeeper Nadeo Argawinata to injury, and Mr. Park did not want that to happen to his students. Using the strongest squad from the beginning to create a safe score gap with Myanmar and then making the most of five possible substitutions is the option at My Dinh today.
The possibility of Vietnam meeting Indonesia in the semi-finals is higher than most. And so, Mr. Park's teachers and students will be at a disadvantage because they have less than a day off and have to travel long distances, and are under pressure at the "fire pan" Gelora Bung Karno. But Vietnam experienced that pressure like the first leg of the 2018 AFF Cup final against Malaysia at Bukit Jalil, and overcame it with a 2-2 draw before winning the second leg at My Dinh.
