Final Round of FIFA World Cup 2022 Asian Qualifiers

Park Hang-seo: “Vietnam in need of points against China”

The clash against China will be of great significance as Vietnam needs to secure points to create a transition in their Group B journey, Vietnam head coach Park Hang-seo shared at a news conference on October 6.

Vietnam head coach Park Hang-seo speaks at a press conference on October 6. (Photo: VFF)
Vietnam head coach Park Hang-seo speaks at a press conference on October 6. (Photo: VFF)

>> Vietnam forward Tien Linh: “Nothing is impossible in race for top three”

The Golden Star Warriors will face neighbours China in the final round of the 2022 FIFA World Cup Asian Qualifiers at 00:00 am on Friday. With both having lost their opening two games, their forthcoming encounter promises to be extremely fierce as the two sides will certainly fight hard for an inaugural win.

“I understand that the Vietnamese people are very interested to see the result of the match with China. I think I am also under pressure as well. However, as the head coach, I can definitely handle it. The players have also been striving to relieve pressure ahead of this game,” Park told reporters.

“We will continue to deliver our best tomorrow. China have their own playing style, and my task is to work out how to counter that,” he affirmed.

The Republic of Korean tactician spoke highly of the Chinese squad, which consist of many quality players.

“They have quite a few naturalised players in addition to Wu Lei, who is currently playing in Spain’s La Liga. China’s national championship is also a leading tournament in Asia. So, I think any player on the Chinese national team has already been certified in terms of their qualifications.”

“It’s a fact that China are placed above Vietnam in the FIFA rankings. Therefore, we need to make the best possible preparations,” he added.

Vietnam’s coaching staff see the presence of assistant coach Park Choong-kyun, who once worked as a manager in the Chinese national championship before taking charge of V.League 1 club Hanoi FC and joining the training work with the Vietnamese national team. When asked about this, Park highly appreciated the assistant’s support. “He served for a year as the manager of a professional Chinese club. I think he can advise me on the playing trend and style of the Chinese players.”

Speaking at the press briefing, defender Do Duy Manh emphasised: “Both teams have made careful preparations for the forthcoming encounter. As for Vietnam, we will need to comply with the coaching staff’s strategies and tactics. My teammates and I have been training hard and are now ready for the game with the highest fighting spirit.”

Defender Do Duy Manh speaks at the press briefing. (Photo: VFF)

“I think that China have their own strong and weak points. They possess many high-quality naturalised players, but we have our own tactics to block and perform well against them,” Manh added.

The Vietnam-China match is scheduled to take place at Sharjah Stadium in the United Arab Emirates.