[스포츠한국 허행운 기자] Director Park Hang-seo’s (64) Vietnam dream has come to an end. Not only Vietnamese fans who are leaving the best manager in history, but also all of Southeast Asian soccer are regretting the end of his ‘Last Dance’.
The Vietnam national football team, led by coach Park Hang-seo, lost 0-1 to Thailand in the second leg of the 2022 ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) Mitsubishi Electric Cup final held at Thammasat Stadium in Pathum Thani, Thailand on the 16th (Korean time). Vietnam lost 2-3 on aggregate in the first and second games, and coach Park Hang-seo hung his head, unable to overcome the wall of Thailand, the strongest in Southeast Asia.
Head coach Park Hang-seo, who took the helm of the Vietnamese national team in October 2017, has written bold records. Starting with the first runner-up in Southeast Asia at the 2018 AFC U-23 Championship, he succeeded in advancing to the first four rounds of the Jakarta-Palembang Asian Games. Then, he vomited the spirit of making Vietnam win the AFF Cup (then Suzuki Cup) for the first time in 10 years.
Later, in 2019, he reached the quarterfinals at the AFC Asian Cup and succeeded in winning two consecutive Southeast Asian (SEA) Games. Thanks to coach Park Hang-seo, Vietnam entered the FIFA (International Football Federation) top 100 in 7 years and advanced to the final World Cup qualifiers for the first time in history.
Director Park Hang-seo, who truly left unanswered achievements, bid farewell to the Vietnamese people. The AFF, which hosted this tournament, also regretted the ‘last dance’ of the famous soccer player in Southeast Asia.
After the finals were over, the federation uploaded a video of coach Park Hang-seo and the phrase “Goodbye and Thank you, Coach Park”. In the video, coach Park Hang-seo, despite the pain of defeat, went around the stadium and waved to the Vietnamese fans who came to support the away team to Thailand.
That’s how the long 5 years and 3 months of companionship came to an end. His contract expires on January 31, but there are no matches for Vietnam at that time. Now, director Park Hang-seo plans to prepare for a full-fledged breakup with his calm mind.
