Vietnam star midfielder among lowest rated players at French club

In a general performance review of Pau FC players (from one to four stars), La Rép des Pyrenees put Hai among the players with a lone star.

“Quang Hai is a victim of the new tactic. Like defender Diyaeddine Abzi, he needs more time to meet Ligue 2 standards,” the newspaper wrote.

At the beginning of the season, Pau head coach Didier Tholot used a 4-2-3-1 formation, so Hai had a place in the lineup as an attacking midfielder who plays right behind the striker. However, this formation did not bring positive results and Tholot switched to a 3-5-2 format. While the club’s performance has improved since, Hai has been warming the bench, more often than not, getting just a few minutes each game.

Besides Hai and Abzi, five other Pau players have received a one-star rating: Mohamed Yattara, Pape Ibnou Ba, Mayron George, Charles Boli and David Gomis.

Four players that contributed the most and got four stars were defender Jean Ruiz, midfielder Henri Saivet, Steeve Beusnard and striker Mons Bassouamina who have contributed to 12 goals scored by their club so far.

On Thursday, Pau agreed to let Hai return to Vietnam and play for the national team at the 2022 AFF Cup. After a Coupe de France game on Saturday, Hai will go to Switzerland for a two-week training trip with his personal coach and return to Vietnam on December 15, five days before the 2022 AFF Cup starts.