Former Dutch U17 captain Keziah Veendorp became Hà Nội FC's latest transfer misfire, as he left the Purples after just 18 minutes of play in their 1-2 defeat in the Hà Nội derby. Photo courtesy of Hà Nội FC.

Anh Đức

As the first Hà Nội derby went into the 72nd minute, with favourites Hà Nội FC leading 1-0, off the bench came a strange new figure wearing the No 3 shirt.

The player coming on, Keziah Veendorp, was one of the Purples' most eagerly awaited players, with a profile that would excite many fans.

The Dutch defender captained his U17 national team to second place in the 2014 UEFA Under-17 Championship, with the likes of Donny Van de Beek and Steven Bergwijn partnering alongside him. 

He then won the Eerste Divisie in the Netherlands with Emmen, and played 141 matches there. Veendorp, at age 27, perhaps might not have been looking for an early retirement in Việt Nam. He was expected to be an upgrade for the defensive side of Hà Nội FC, which were on a downturn after the departure of Bùi Hoàng Việt Anh.

But as Veendorp came on, fans became anxious and disappointed with his appearance and his play. The Dutchman was visibly overweight for a footballer, and struggled to keep pace with the quick-witted, pacy strikers from Viettel FC.

Just three minutes after Veendorp was subbed in, Viettel FC equalised, then completed their 2-1 comeback in the final minute of the match. Fans lambasted Tuấn's decision to bring on Veendorp as "self-destruction".

Veendorp's 18 minutes of play was also his last in the V.League, as Hà Nội FC terminated the Dutchman's contract on September 27 and replaced him with former Viettel FC player Jahongir Abdumominov, better known as Jaha.

Hà Nội FC's recent failure with foreign players is slowly becoming detrimental to their success. Despite having some of the best local talents, the Purples' scouting department seems to be more attracted to the glossy CVs of their expat players, rather than their ability and their cohesion with the team.

This is perhaps a disappointment for the team usually known for having the best foreign players in the league.

In their heyday, Hà Nội FC had an iron shield in the form of Cristiano Roland, and the ever-effective goal scoring machines Gonzalo Marronkle and Hoàng Vũ Samson. Young players such as Đỗ Duy Mạnh, Nguyễn Quang Hải and Phạm Đức Huy came up through the ranks and learnt a lot by partnering with Roland, Samson and others.

Last year, Hà Nội FC represented V.League in the AFC Champions League, and invested heavily in foreign players. Damien Le Tallec, Caion Herlison, Brandon Wilson and Milan Jevtovic all came to the capital with impressive past playing histories, but brought disappointment and all left mid-season.

Although the V.League is placing emphasis on boosting local talents and Vietnamese heritage players, looking at its past winners in the last decade, one can always name at least one foreign player who was critical to that team's success.

For Nam Định, it was the duo of Rafaelson and Hendrio, for Hà Nội Police it was Jhon Cley, and the list goes on.

If Hà Nội FC want to find their past glory, someone must carry the mantle. But who? VNS