HANOI (24 May 2012) – Phan Thanh Hung, the current chief coach of Hanoi T&T, has been appointed as the interim coach of the Vietnam national team as they prepare for the friendlies against China and Hong Kong next month.
The 2008 AFF Suzuki champions are currently going through some tough moments in appointing a new chief coach following their decision to part ways with Falko Goetz earlier this year.
But with the 2012 edition of the AFF Suzuki Cup coming up in less than six months, Vietnam will be anxious to whip up a squad capable of taking on the best in ASEAN and in so doing, add a second title to the crown they won four years ago.
The Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) stated that they are looking at signing Thanh Hung for just a four-month period after the end of the V-League 2012, so as to ensure Thanh Hung’s availability for the AFF Suzuki Cup 2012 that will be co-hosted by Thailand and Malaysia.
In the meantime, the VFF have signed Lu Dinh Tuan as the new coach of the Vietnam national Under-22 team. He takes over from Mai Duc Chung, who has gone to take up an advanced specialized course in football coaching in the Czech Republic.
“This is very likely to be a final decision because there is now no other candidate, and it will be announced early next week if nothing changes,” said Ngo Le Bang, the general secretary of the VFF.
Dinh Tuan had previously coached Saigon FC in the V-League.
