Vietnamese striker parts ways with Korean club, headed for France

He will first join the Vietnamese team at the upcoming King’s Cup in Thailand next Wednesday.

Phuong had been loaned by Hoang Anh Gia Lai to Incheon for one season. But Hoang Anh Gia Lai’s JMG Global Academy managed to get him a trial at a second-tier French team, Nguyen Tan Anh, the club’s manager, told VnExpress. No further information has been revealed on what Phuong will be doing in France.

"We discussed with Incheon United and got their approval. After the King's Cup, Cong Phuong will go to France," Anh said.

In his final match at Incheon in the K-League on Saturday, he did not come off the bench.

In the previous 14 matches he only played 352 minutes and failed to score, having only three shots at goal.

But not everything was doom and gloom, and he did cause an impression within the team and garnered some praise from South Korean sports commentators.

Phuong has flown directly to Thailand to join the national team ahead of their match against Thailand on June 5.

He has been a main player in the national team in recent major tournaments, including Asian Games 2018 where they finished fourth and the ASEAN Football Federation Championship where they won the cup.