India vs Vietnam: Manolo Marquez hopes to be third-time lucky in bid to end winning drought

The Match

Vietnam vs India, FIFA International Friendly

12 October 2024, Thien Truong Stadium, Nam Dịnh, Vietnam

4:30 PM kickoff (stream on FanCode, live blog on espn.in)

The big picture

Manolo Marquez takes charge of India once again, in what will be his third game with the senior men’s national football team, who travel to face Vietnam in an international friendly. The tri-nation tournament which originally included Lebanon has been reduced to a single game due to the withdrawal of the Middle Eastern nation involved in a military conflict.

Given the paucity of FIFA international windows, this is a blow for both India and Vietnam who have new managers at the helm. Both coaches are seeking their first victory with the national team.

Marquez began his tenure with a goalless draw at home to Mauritius, followed by a 0-3 loss against Syria in Hyderabad. Kim Sang-sik, who took over from Phillipe Troussier earlier this year, oversaw Vietnam’s 1-3 loss to Iraq which saw them eliminated from FIFA World Cup qualifying (second round), and then a 0-3 loss to Russia and 1-2 loss to Thailand in the previous international windows.

With Vietnam’s domestic league also mirroring the Indian Super League in being around four rounds old, the players of both sides are at a similar physical level. The hosts are ranked 116th in the world – 10 spots above India – but have been in freefall ever since the departure of Park Hang-seo from the coaching role – having only won one of their ten games in 2024.

India have not fared much better, having not won any of their nine games in 2024, with their last victory coming in November 2023. India are still coming to grips with what Marquez expects from his players, and this game represents a great test for the 23-man squad.

Key Players

Vietnam – Van Toan Nguyen

Coach Kim Sang-sik has called up a plethora of Under-23 players for this game, and thus 31-year-old captain and centre-back Ngoc Hai Que becomes hugely important at the back, especially after goalkeeper Van Lam Dang’s recent mistakes.

However, with Vietnam struggling to finish many chances under their Korean coach, the onus of scoring would have ordinarily fallen on their most prolific striker currently, Tien Linh Nguyen, who has 21 goals for the national team, including one in their most recent match against Thailand. However, the striker is out with an injury and it may necessitate Van Toan Nguyen filling in to lead the line, despite primarily operating as a winger. Importantly, Van Toan already scored against India the last time they met, and his trickery may prove a handful for the Indian defenders.

Van Quyet Nguyen was also on the scoresheet the last time these two teams met (Vietnam won 3-0) and as a central striker, he could be a like-for-like replacement for Tien Linh. However, the veteran has not scored since 2022 for the national team. Youngster Bui Vi Hao also scored twice in an unofficial friendly for Vietnam against Nam Dinh two days ago, so might get an opportunity.

India – Lallianzuala Chhangte

All eyes will be on India’s best goal threat on paper – Lallianzuala Chhangte – especially after a middling start to the ISL season, where he’s failed to find the net or provide an assist. With the central striking role still a cause for concern (Manvir Singh, Farukh Chaudhary and Vikram Partap Singh don’t feature in that role in club football, while Edmund Lalrindika plays in the I-League), goals are likely to come from the wings, and Chhangte has the best pedigree.

Rahul Bheke and Chinglensana Singh are also likely to face plenty of intense pressing at the back and Marquez will need them to be calm on the ball.

Concerns

Vietnam

Coach Kim Sang-sik has his work cut out with plenty of Vietnam’s golden generation under Park Hang-seo woefully out of form. He’s opted for a youthful squad against India, and while those players have shown great industry, they’ve also been quite profligate in front of goal. It doesn’t help that the goalkeeping situation isn’t settled, with Filip Nguyen likely to get the nod over Van Lam Dang.

However, with 13 of the players who defeated India 3-0 two years ago still in the squad, they could similarly rely on a fast start that saw India collapse – which might be a possibility in the packed stands in Nam Dinh.

India

Marquez minced no words in his post-mortem following his first two games, but with his players effectively unfit and unfamiliar with his systems, one could give them the benefit of the doubt. The Spaniard has also proved he’s not shy of making changes, bringing in Lalrinliana Hnamte and Aakash Sangwan, while Farukh Chaudhary returns to the national team after three years.

With more training sessions under their belt, one can expect that Marquez’s side will be more compact. Yet, the problem for India remains finding the net, and there doesn’t seem to be a readymade solution at hand.

What they said

Manolo Marquez, head coach of India

“I think Vietnam have good players. We are playing away from home. It will be difficult for us, but equally for them too. We are looking physically better than before now, but we can still be better. Our league started less than a month ago, and if you ask anyone involved in professional football, you know that you’re not in your best condition until you play at least 10-12 matches in the season.”

“But that doesn’t matter as we are playing now. Vietnam are in a similar situation since their league has also completed four rounds. I think the team which wins this will prove they are better than the other, at least in this game.”

“In one way, it’s worse because you play only one game. In another way, it’s better because you have a little more time to prepare. If we had to play on the 9th, practically, we would’ve had only two training sessions before the game. At least now we’ll have four or five sessions. I think the players can better understand our philosophy. Let’s see if that’s enough or not. But that’s normal when you play with the national team. You need to have some sessions under your belt before a match.”

Kim Sang-sik, head coach of Vietnam