Captain blasted for VN poor debut at AFF Cup

Team captain Minh Duc is the national football player that received the most criticism from local football fans after the team’s disappointing 1 – 1 draw with Myanmar in the Group A opening match of the ongoing 2012 AFF Suzuki Cup in Thailand on Saturday.

Vietnam took the lead with a goal by midfielder Tan Tai, but Myanmar equalized the game just after the break thanks to a penalty kick awarded as Kyi Lin was brought down in the penalty area by Minh Duc.

The Vietnamese captain thus became the centre of heated debates on Facebook shortly after the match was over.

“Vietnam’s defending force was too weak. Their performances were unacceptable, especially that of Minh Duc,” a netizen wrote on his profile.

This demanding spectator criticized that the team’s attackers were moving too slow and lacked creativity in their tactics.

The Myanmar match thus marked a sad start for the very first captaincy of the 29-year-old midfielder.

He has become what was described by online fans as “the black sheep of the team,” who has “destroyed everything the other players have struggled to establish.”

Even worse, his mistake would only remind fans of the veteran names.

“Minh Duc just failed to fulfill his captain role in this match. How I miss Phuoc Tu and Nhu Thanh,” exclaimed a fan nicknamed Mad Dream.

Local aficionados have expressed pessimism after the bad start of the team, steered by Phan Thanh Hung, the first-ever domestic coach to take the chair at the national team.

Vietnam will play the Philippines on Tuesday, and their biggest rival Thailand in the last match of the group stage on November 30.

Difficulties are awaiting in these two last matches, fans said.