Football

HA NOI — Viet Nam’s head coach Park Hang-seo has said he is under great pressure to win a gold medal at the upcoming Southeast Asian (SEA) Games.

“So far, I have experienced big football events with Vietnamese football. None of them were easy but I never thought of giving up if I faced great pressure,” said the South Korean coach.

However, Park said he and his players will make every effort with “Viet Nam spirit” to bring joy to fans.

During the press conference on Wednesday, Park explained why he agreed to lead both the U22 team and national senior team, instead of only focusing on the senior team for the upcoming qualification for the 2022 World Cup.

"There are two important events this year which are nearly similar in competition schedule. So I wanted to focus on training the senior team to have the better result,” said South Korean coach Park.

“In a recent meeting with the Viet Nam Football Federation (VFF), the federation agreed I would lead the national team, while my assistant Lee Young-jin would lead the U22 team in the SEA Games.

“After that I met several leaders of the National Sports Administration and saw that the SEA Games have a great meaning for the country. I know that Vietnamese people thirst for the gold of SEA Games after more than 50 years of waiting so I changed my mind to undertake the head coach position of the U22 team,” said Park.

“At present, I continue to work with the VFF to find the best solution. We will be divided into two parts with two different training boards. Assistants and training staff in each team will have responsibilities in selecting players,” Park added.

Viet Nam will play six matches in World Cup 2022 qualification, Asian zone from September 5 to November 19, while the SEA Games will take place in November in the Philippines.

Under the guidance of Park, Viet Nam were the runners-up of the AFC U23 Championship 2018 for the first time ever, won the AFF Suzuki Championship later that same year for the first time in a decade and then advanced to the quarter-finals of AFC Asian Cup 2019. — VNS