VietNamNet Bridge – Star striker Le Cong Vinh, who scored the decisive goal in the final of the 2008 Southeast Asia football championships, spent four months in Portugal playing football and another four months getting treatment for a ligament injury. Vinh returns to his former club Ha Noi T&T, V-League defending V-League champions, for the new season. He spoke to Viet Nam News about his stay in Portugal and this season's V-League prospects.

When did you return to Viet Nam? How is your injury? How are things at the club?

I returned to Viet Nam on October 10 last year. At the moment, everything is going well for me at the club. People here have helped me a lot. I am still recovering from the ligament injury I suffered last April. After seven months of being away, I have recovered about 85 per cent and can begin to play V-League matches after the Lunar New Year [February 3].

Could you share with us some of your experiences and impressions about the time you lived and played football in Portugal? What was the most important lesson you learnt?

In Portugal, I once trained alongside Brazilian player Anderson of Manchester United. I received much help from Anderson and especially, the family of Henrique Calisto (Vietnamese national team coach).

I have many good memories from the two trips to Portugal. I played three matches for Leixoes in the Portuguese National Cup competition and scored three goals. I also played two matches for Leixoes in Portuguese football championship, La Liga, but scored no goal.

During the second trip to Portugal for treatment, I felt more familiar and at ease with the life and people in Portugal. The treatment for football injuries in Portugal is very good. Calisto's family made me feel that it was like my second home.

In the past, there have been some stars in Southeast Asia who've plied their trade abroad. For example, Kiatisak Senamuang of Thailand once played football in England and Le Huynh Duc of Viet Nam did in China. But they came back after less than a year with little success. Why do you think this happens?

Southeast Asian players in general and Vietnamese players in particular will find it difficult to play football successfully abroad because there are a gap in the skills level, lifestyle and the language barrier.

Besides skills and a tactical mind, European football requires players to be well built and have a lot of physical strength, which is usually are the weak points for Vietnamese and Southeast Asian players.

The difference in lifestyle also plays a part. In Viet Nam, players live, train and eat together throughout the competition but in Portugal, a footballer is like a civil servant. He will come to the training pitch from home at the time of training and return home to be with his wife and children after the training hours.

The language barrier is one of the difficult problems facing foreign players. In Portugal, few people speak English and my English is not very good. This prevents me from communicating with the coach and teammates in training and I could not share my thoughts and problems with people.

Before the injury, you were the captain of Ha Noi T&T and now the Christiano has the role. Do you want your leadership role back?

When I rejoined the club, I talked to the club's leaders and coach, informing them I did not intend to be the captain again and that Christiano was the person to wear the armband because he has done his job well so far and brought luck to the club.

Moreover, my contract with the club will expire next year, so I only want to play as well as possible and contribute as much as possible to the club.

In your view, who are the contenders for the V-League title this year?

In my opinion, the title race this season is between Becamex Binh Duong, SHB Da Nang and defending champions Ha Noi T&T. Although it is going to be very difficult for Ha Noi T&T to defend the title, I believe we can retain the trophy.

Then there are some potential candidates like Song Lam Nghe An and Navibank Sai Gon who could spring a few surprises.

VietNamNet/Viet Nam News