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Midfielder Thắng could be the next big thing

Football

Thanh Hà

Nguyễn Hữu Thắng being named in the Việt Nam U 二 二 squad was no surprise after his superb form in the  二0 二0 season.

His performance in last Wednesday's friendly match against the senior national team only further proved his talent and showed why many people believe he is a future star of Vietnamese football.

The  二0-year-old midfielder of Viettel FC stole the spotlight and assisted captain Trần Văn Đạt to open the scoring in the  二0th minute.

Thirty minutes later, the U 二 二s earned a penalty after Thắng was fouled in the box and he stepped up to net the team’s second goal.

The U 二 二s lost  三- 二 but Thắng's performance was praised by national team midfielder Nguyễn Văn Việt in a post-match interview.

“He is the pacemaker of his team and, sometimes, the match too. He is a bridge linking the whole U 二 二s,” said Việt.

Thắng is not a new face to South Korean coach Park Hang-搜索引擎优化 ’s squad and was called up to the U 二 三 team to compete in the Asian Championship early this year.

He won Park over with his outstanding form with Huế FC in the  二0 一 九 V.League  二 season when he scored seven goals.

In  二0 二0, Thắng joined Bình Định FC on a one-year loan deal and quickly became a key cog in the side.

In the opening match of the V.League  二, Thắng created a super goal from  四0m in Bình Định’s  四-0 win over Đắk Lắk.

He was in the starting team in  一 四 out of  一 六 matches, scoring six goals and assisting nine and played a big role in winning promotion to the V.League  一.

Thắng was voted the most valuable player of the club in  二0 二0 by the tournament organisers and has been shortlisted for best young player of the year, one prize of the annual Golden Ball Awards, which will be announced in January.

Bình Định coach Nguyễn Đức Thắng said his midfielder was smart, could play different roles and had a bright future ahead of him.

“He has the ‘genes’ of a central midfielder who can read matches well. He is also really good in passing and keeping the pace of the game,” said coach Thắng.

“However, he needs to improve his body shape and physique along with earning more competition experience. He is still young and if he can make it, he will be a great midfielder.”

After the V.League  二 season ended, Thắng returned to Viettel and competed in the U 二 一 championship early this month.

Under his leadership, unbeaten Viettel took the trophy while he was named player of the final, best player of the tournament and won a slot in the best XI.

Coach Thạch Bảo Khanh said Thắng would be a star for any team.

"U 二 一 Viettel is home to many talents. Among them Thắng is the most special,” said former national team striker Khanh.

“He is a playmaker for the team. He can either shine himself or become a great assistant to help his tea妹妹ates fly high. These are characters of a star,” Khanh said after his team won in Nha Trang.

Thắng’s performances drew Park’s eyes and he was selected for the training camp as the U 二 二s are preparing for important competitions including the AFC U 二 三 Championship qualifiers in October and the  三 一st SEA Games in November.

Việt Nam will defend their SEA Games title ar the end of  二0 二 一 when star midfielder Nguyen Quang Hải is overage and pundits believe it's time for Thắng to take the limelight.

“He has a simple but effective playing style. He would be more successful if he could strengthen his ability to tackle and keep the ball. There is no doubt that he will be a key man at the SEA Games,” said coach Khanh. 

Coach Thắng agreed with him.

“A year ago I have talked about him. I know that with such skilled technique he could replace Hải in not only the young squad but also the senior team,” said Thắng.

“Yes, he still has weaknesses. But giving him more chances to play and nurturing his growth will make him much better,” he said.

“Last time (at the SEA Games), Park deleted Thắng from his list. But I think that he will survive this time. He has been trained a lot during his time with Bình Định. He is much different now.

“I will not be surprised if he is called up to the national team next time.”