Japanese coach off to difficult start at Hanoi FC

Coach Iwamasa Daiki during the press conference after Hanoi FC's 0-2 defeat to Thanh Hoa in V. League on Feb. 18, 2024. Photo by VnExpress/Minh Minh

"How the players performed during the game looked nothing like what they did in training," Daiki said after the game of Hanoi FC and Thanh Hoa FC on Sunday.

Daiki said the players failed to follow his tactics because this was only the first game they played under his lead. Another reason was that some key players in the club have just returned from the Asian Cup, so two weeks of training was not enough.

"If we play without any intention, we cannot be a team, we cannot control the game," Daiki said.

As a player, Daiki was a talented midfielder who was part of the Japan team that won the 2011 Asian Cup.

After retirement, Daiki spent two years as the head coach of Kashima Antlers in J1 League. He was appointed as Hanoi FC coach, replacing Dinh The Nam after the eighth round of the V. League in December.

Daiki assessed that Thanh Hoa's pitch was not good and flat enough to play possession football but added that this was not an excuse for the defeat, and he was making a suggestion to improve the quality of the league.

Thanh Hoa coach Velizar Popov agreed with Daiki that pitch condition is the first thing that needs to be improved for Vietnam to play possession football.

"There are many talented players in Vietnam. The game between Thanh Hoa and Hanoi could have been much better if the pitch condition was good," Popov said.

After the game, Thanh Hoa climbed to second with 18 points while Hanoi are 10th on 10 points.

 

 

Japanese coach off to difficult start at Hanoi FC

Thanh Hóa 2-0 Hà Nội FC