Vietnamese Phan Van Duc was named among the five most influential players at the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) Suzuki Cup’s Group A, according to an article posted on the affsuzikicup.com.

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In a team surrounded by star talents, Duc has made noticeable contributions to the team’s results. In Vietnam’s expected 3-4-3 formation, Duc is likely to line up as the left-sided midfielder or wingback where he will play a vital role in linking the attack and defence.

Having caught the eyes at this year’s AFC U23 Championship, where he scored a vital goal against Iraq in the quarterfinals, the 22-year-old could be a key cog in the engine room of one of the tournament favourites.

Soukaphone Vongchiengkham is a shining name in the Lao football team. The article said “As one of the few players based outside of the nation, the 26-year-old playmaker is a natural leader within the Lao squad and a player that has earned the respect and admiration of his teammates and could be a vital part of any success that the nation may have at the AFF Suzuki Cup”.

Meanwhile, 32-year-old Norshahrul Idlan Talaha is the best hope for the Malaysian team who have struggled to find a consistent scorer. Having scored in the AFF Cup in 2014, he is blessed with “an eye for goal and a powerful shot”. Also, he has impressed the football professionals in recent training camps.   

For the Cambodian team, Brak Thiva, who is tall and lithe, is described as a “creative threat”. The 19-year-old man played in Cambodia’s last two friendly matches and had a good chance of partnering famous Chan Vathanaka. Brak Thiva is “still under-the-radar forward line”, the article wrote.

The last name is experienced David Htan of the Myanmar team, who is likely to play an important role in helping the team to confront with some dangerous Group A forwards.

The 28-year-old central defender has previous AFF Suzuki Cup experience and even though he is not the tallest of defenders, he makes up for that with “a good positional sense, reading of the play and an ability to win one-on-one challenges”.-VNA