Hanoi Police Club doesn't know how to use Quang Hai?

After the first 7 matches in the Hanoi Police Club, Quang Hai did not score any goals and did not have a single assist. The 2018 Vietnam Golden Ball occasionally showed off his high-class football skills, but those were only moments.

The recent victory over his former team, Hanoi FC, was Nguyen Quang Hai’s 7th match since joining his new team. However, it was not a good milestone. In those 7 matches, the team won and lost, but Quang Hai’s statistics of goals and assists were still zero. Quang Hai’s mark on the Hanoi Police Club’s playing style was very faint.

The last time Quang Hai scored in the V-League was against Thanh Hoa Club in March last year when he was still playing for Hanoi Club.

That has never happened to Quang Hai Hai since he joined the V-League. Even in the canceled 2021 season or the 2022 season where Hai only played 2 matches before going abroad, he scored goals.

In the last 3 matches, Hai's playing time has gradually decreased: from 71 minutes against Hai Phong to 58 minutes against Nam Dinh and finally 28 minutes against Hanoi FC. Notably, in the recent Capital derby, which can be considered the most important match for the police team in the championship race, Quang Hai was not in the starting lineup.

The irony is that the less Quang Hai plays, the easier it is for Cong An Ha Noi FC to win. All 4 of the top team's recent goals were scored during the time Quang Hai was not on the field.

Quang Hai's decline in form is obvious - right from the AFF Cup 2022 - after a long time of not playing regularly. Of course, this midfielder needs time to regain his playing feeling as well as get used to the new environment. However, it is those new things that are making it difficult for the 2018 Vietnam Golden Ball.

Being placed too far from the goal made Quang Hai have to compete and collide more and had less opportunity to enter the penalty area.

At Hanoi Police Club, Quang Hai plays as a left winger in a 4-4-2 formation, sometimes playing as a deep central midfielder as an organizer. In theory, Quang Hai would fill the biggest gap at Hanoi Police Club - an organizer. However, in those positions, Quang Hai has not been able to demonstrate his strengths. In reality, Quang Hai has rarely played like that before.

Where did Quang Hai play during his most brilliant period? Coach Chu Dinh Nghiem often deployed this midfielder as a winger or a left midfielder (number 8) in Hanoi FC's 4-3-3 formation. Coach Park Hang Seo uses a 3-center-back formation for the Vietnam national team/U23 team, but Quang Hai's position is similar. These positions allow Quang Hai to move flexibly near the opponent's penalty area, participate more deeply in attacks, penetrate the penalty area and finish.

Meanwhile, the way Hanoi Police Club uses Quang Hai not only fails to promote this player's strengths but also makes him reveal his limitations more clearly. A coach who has worked with Quang Hai once analyzed that this player is not suitable for a pure wing role because he is not strong in breaking speed and dribbling the ball for long distances.

In the central midfield role, Quang Hai was pushed far away from the penalty area. He used to play in the midfield pair of the 3-4-3 formation, but the presence of a third center back helped Quang Hai reduce his defensive duties. The 4-4-2 formation requires the central midfielders to be more "covering the field". That has never been Quang Hai's strong point.

The fact that Hanoi Police Club is not deploying Quang Hai appropriately is something that many experts have mentioned. Coach Vu Hong Viet (Nam Dinh) commented that Quang Hai "is not currently playing in his best position", while his former coach Chu Dinh Nghiem (Hai Phong) believes that Hanoi Police Club playing like this "is very difficult for him".

Coach Flavio Cruz still defends Quang Hai - of course. He has said more than once that "Hai is still playing well" despite his on-field performance saying otherwise. There is a feeling that the Brazilian coach does not know how to fully exploit the creative midfielder's abilities, but is still forced to use him because he cannot waste such a star on the bench.

Is it really that difficult to use Quang Hai? Since this player appeared in V-League in 2016, he has shone at all levels, in all colors, as the leader leading U20 Vietnam to the World Cup, as the hero of U23 under coach Park Hang Seo, once achieved the title of Best Player in Southeast Asia in the Vietnam team and always scored, assisted and left a strong impression in Hanoi FC's matches.

From domestic coaches like Nguyen Duc Thang, Hoang Anh Tuan to foreign coaches like Park Hang Seo, everyone has been successful with Quang Hai or more accurately, Hai is qualified for all the mentioned playgrounds. However, coach Flavio Cruz has not been able to do so. After 7 matches, Hanoi Police Club still cannot use their most famous star effectively.

Quang Hai may not be good, but not being able to use him is the coach's fault.

According to VTC News