# Lê Công Vinh

Lê Công Vinh (born 10 December 1985) is a Vietnamese former footballer who played as a forward. He was part of the Vietnam national team between 2004 and 2016, and played predominantly as an attacker. Considered one of the greatest players in Vietnamese football's history, Công Vinh achieved the highest scores of all time in the Vietnam national team, and received three Vietnamese Golden Ball Awards (2004, 2006, and 2007).

## Early life

Lê Công Vinh was born in Quỳnh Lâm, Quỳnh Lưu, Nghệ An; he has two older sisters and one younger sister. Due to difficult conditions for the whole family, his father smuggled cocaine; he was later arrested and sentenced to 12 years in jail. However, after only 8 years due to good behavior, he was released before the due date.

## Club career
### Song Lam Nghe An

Born in Nghệ An, Công Vinh is a well-known Vietnamese footballer. Công Vinh is widely considered as one of the best strikers that Song Lam Nghe An has ever produced, along with Phạm Văn Quyến. He is currently SLNA's all-time top goal scorer.
At the age of 14, he began to train his football skill. After the qualification to junior team of Nghệ An, he was classified to be "not so potential", both in skill and mentality.
At the age of 18, he was picked into the main team of Song Lam Nghe An where he started to show his ability at JVC Cup 2003.
Until 2004, he scored his first score at V-League on 8 February against Dong Thap team. Later he received Best New Player of the Year as well as Best Player of the Year Award. Eventually, he received many invitations from other football clubs, even from Japan and Saudi Arabia for the salary up to $10,000/month.

### Hanoi T&T

In 2008, after a well-documented transfer saga, Công Vinh turned down Thể Công at the last minute to accept a more lucrative offer from Hanoi T&T; it was the highest transfer fee in Vietnamese football at the time.

### Leixões S.C.

At the beginning of August 2009, T&T announced that Công Vinh would be joining Leixões Sport Club of Portugal in a three-month loan deal, starting 1 September 2009. The deal was facilitated by Henrique Calisto, who was once Leixões' manager.
On 24 August 2009, Công Vinh officially signed with Leixões and was given the number 29 shirt. Two days later, in a friendly match against Padroense F.C., he scored his first goal for the club, as a substitute, in the 89th minute to secure a 2–0 win. He was included in the 18-man squad for the match against defending champions F.C. Porto on 12 September, but did not make the field in an eventual 1–4 loss. His first-team debut came on 4 October, in a league contest against União de Leiria, making him the first ever Vietnamese footballer to play in a professional European league; he played the entire ninety minutes in an eventual 3–2 home win, despite trailing for most of the game.
On 18 October 2009, Công Vinh scored his first official goal for Leixões, in a 2–1 Portuguese Cup win against Casa Pia AC. In January of the following year, he returned to Hà Nội T&T.

### Hanoi ACB

Lê Công Vinh made the move from T&T to its city rivals Hanoi FC in September 2011. Công Vinh was set to sign a three-year extension with T&T but decided to move to ACB after the controversial 2011 V-League season and the set up at ACB.

### Return to Song Lam Nghe An

After Hanoi FC was dissolved following the 2012 season, Công Vinh began the long process of finding a new club. After turning down trial offers from Sriwijaya of the Indonesia Super League and Consadole Sapporo of the J. League Division 2, he settled with a one-year loan move back to Song Lam Nghe An.

### Consadole Sapporo

After failed negotiations earlier in the 2013 V.League 1 season, Le Cong Vinh announced that he would join J2 League side Consadole Sapporo on loan on 22 July 2013. His time with Consadole is scheduled to last five months from August 2013 through 1 January 2014. However, he decided to return to Vietnam one month earlier than expected because Consadole Sapporo could not advance to the play-off match. During his four months stay in Japan, he managed to score four times in 11 appearances for the club. With 2 of those goals and 9 of those appearances in the J2 League.

### Becamex Binh Duong

In a game against Xi Mang Hai Phong on 27 April 2015, Công Vinh set the record for the fastest goal ever scored in Vietnamese football as he put the ball in the net with barely ten seconds played. Bình Dương kicked off the match with Công Vinh latching on to a quick pass to chip the ball over goalkeeper Nguyễn Thanh Thắng in an eventual 3–1 win.

## International career

In the first group match of the 2007 Asian Cup, Công Vinh scored the second goal for Vietnam to secure a 2–0 victory against United Arab Emirates. The team eventually reached the quarterfinals, before falling to eventual champions Iraq.
After a quiet and much criticised performance in the group stage in the 2008 AFF Championship, Công Vinh came through in the elimination stage. He set up the only goal in a 1–0 upset of defending champions Singapore. In the first leg of the final, Công Vinh scored the second to give Vietnam a victory against Thailand in Bangkok. In the second leg, Công Vinh set off celebrations throughout Vietnam as he headed home the tying goal in the last minute, thus giving Vietnam its first ever AFF Championship title.
After the 2016 AYA Bank Cup, Công Vinh announced that he would retire from international football after the 2016 AFF Championship. If only the Vietnamese national squad able to qualify for the finals in the 2016 edition, Công Vinh said that he will think twice about his retirement as he received request from international clubs to play in their league for the 2017 edition. Shortly after the end of Vietnam's match against Indonesia in the 2016 semi-finals, which they lost, Công Vinh retired from professional football.

### International goals
#### Vietnam olympic

| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
| 1. | 7 December 2003 | Hanoi, Hàng Đẫy Stadium | Laos | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2003 Southeast Asian Games |
| 2. | 28 November 2006 | Al-Gharafa Stadium, Al-Rayyan | Bahrain | 1–0 | 1–2 | 2006 Asian Games |
| 3. | 5 December 2006 | Grand Hamad Stadium, Doha | Bangladesh | 4–1 | 5–1 | 2006 Asian Games |
| 4. | 2 December 2005 | Bacolod, Panaad Stadium | Malaysia | 1–1 | 2–1 | 2005 Southeast Asian Games |
| 5. | 2 December 2005 | Bacolod, Panaad Stadium | Malaysia | 2–1 | 2–1 | 2005 Southeast Asian Games |
| 6. | 28 February 2007 | Thiên Truong Stadium, Nam Định | Lebanon | 1–0 | 2–0 | Asian football qualifiers for 2008 Olympics |
| 7. | 14 March 2007 | Mattoangin Stadium, Makassar | Indonesia | 1–0 | 1–0 | Asian football qualifiers for 2008 Olympics |
| 8. | 1 December 2007 | Nakhon Ratchasima | Malaysia | 1–0 | 3–1 | 2007 Southeast Asian Games |
| 9. | 1 December 2007 | Nakhon Ratchasima | Malaysia | 2–0 | 3–1 | 2007 Southeast Asian Games |
| 10. | 8 December 2007 | Banbueng Municipality Stadium, Chonburi, Thailand | Singapore | 2–3 | 2–3 | 2007 Southeast Asian Games |

#### Vietnam

International goals scored by Lê Công Vinh :
| No. | Cap | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
| 1 | 2 | 20 August 2004 | Thống Nhất Stadium, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam | Myanmar | 1–0‡ | 5–0 | 2004 LG Cup |
| 2 | 2 | 20 August 2004 | Thống Nhất Stadium, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam | Myanmar | 5–0 | 5–0 | 2004 LG Cup |
| 3 | 3 | 24 August 2004 | Thống Nhất Stadium, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam | India | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2004 LG Cup |
| 4 | 8 | 9 December 2004 | Thống Nhất Stadium, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam | Cambodia | 3–1 | 9–1 | 2004 AFF Championship |
| 5 | 8 | 9 December 2004 | Thống Nhất Stadium, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam | Cambodia | 8–1 | 9–1 | 2004 AFF Championship |
| 6 | 8 | 9 December 2004 | Thống Nhất Stadium, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam | Cambodia | 9–1 | 9–1 | 2004 AFF Championship |
| 7 | 10 | 15 December 2004 | Mỹ Đình National Stadium, Hanoi, Vietnam | Laos | 1–0 | 3–0 | 2004 AFF Championship |
| 8 | 12 | 26 December 2006 | Suphachalasai Stadium, Bangkok, Thailand | Kazakhstan | 2–1 | 2–1 | 2006 King's Cup |
| 9 | 13 | 28 December 2006 | Suphachalasai Stadium, Bangkok, Thailand | Singapore | 3–2 | 3–2 | 2006 King's Cup |
| 10 | 16 | 17 January 2007 | Jalan Besar Stadium, Kallang, Singapore | Laos | 1–0 | 9–0 | 2007 AFF Championship |
| 11 | 16 | 17 January 2007 | Jalan Besar Stadium, Kallang, Singapore | Laos | 2–0 | 9–0 | 2007 AFF Championship |
| 12 | 16 | 17 January 2007 | Jalan Besar Stadium, Kallang, Singapore | Laos | 5–0 | 9–0 | 2007 AFF Championship |
| 13 | 19 | 24 June 2007 | Mỹ Đình National Stadium, Hanoi, Vietnam | Jamaica | 1–0 | 3–0 | Friendly |
| 14 | 20 | 30 June 2007 | Mỹ Đình National Stadium, Hanoi, Vietnam | Bahrain | 1–1 | 5–3 | Friendly |
| 15 | 20 | 30 June 2007 | Mỹ Đình National Stadium, Hanoi, Vietnam | Bahrain | 2–1 | 5–3 | Friendly |
| 16 | 21 | 8 July 2007 | Mỹ Đình National Stadium, Hanoi, Vietnam | United Arab Emirates | 1–0 | 2–0 | 2007 AFC Asian Cup |
| 17 | 27 | 1 October 2008 | Thống Nhất Stadium, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam | Myanmar | 1–1 | 2–3 | 2008 Ho Chi Minh City International Football Tournament |
| 18 | 27 | 1 October 2008 | Thống Nhất Stadium, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam | Myanmar | 2–3 | 2–3 | 2008 Ho Chi Minh City International Football Tournament |
| 19 | 28 | 5 October 2008 | Thống Nhất Stadium, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam | Turkmenistan | 2–3 | 2–3 | 2008 Ho Chi Minh City International Football Tournament |
| 20 | 32 | 26 November 2008 | Jurong East Stadium, Jurong East, Singapore | Singapore | 1–1 | 2–2 (4–5 pen.) | Friendly |
| 21 | 38 | 24 December 2008 | Rajamangala Stadium, Bangkok, Thailand | Thailand | 2–0 | 2–1 | 2008 AFF Championship |
| 22 | 39 | 28 December 2008 | Mỹ Đình National Stadium, Hanoi, Vietnam | Thailand | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2008 AFF Championship |
| 23 | 40 | 14 January 2009 | Mỹ Đình National Stadium, Hanoi, Vietnam | Lebanon | 2–0 | 3–1 | 2011 AFC Asian Cup qualification |
| 24 | 43 | 17 January 2010 | Mỹ Đình National Stadium, Hanoi, Vietnam | China | 1–2‡ | 1–2 | 2011 AFC Asian Cup qualification |
| 25 | 44 | 29 June 2011 | Thống Nhất Stadium, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam | Macau | 1–0 | 6–0 | 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC) |
| 26 | 44 | 29 June 2011 | Thống Nhất Stadium, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam | Macau | 2–0 | 6–0 | 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC) |
| 27 | 44 | 29 June 2011 | Thống Nhất Stadium, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam | Macau | 3–0‡ | 6–0 | 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC) |
| 28 | 45 | 3 July 2011 | Estádio Campo Desportivo, Macau | Macau | 3–0 | 7–1 | 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC) |
| 29 | 45 | 3 July 2011 | Estádio Campo Desportivo, Macau | Macau | 4–0 | 7–1 | 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC) |
| 30 | 45 | 3 July 2011 | Estádio Campo Desportivo, Macau | Macau | 5–1 | 7–1 | 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC) |
| 31 | 45 | 3 July 2011 | Estádio Campo Desportivo, Macau | Macau | 6–1‡ | 7–1 | 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC) |
| 32 | 52 | 11 September 2012 | Shah Alam Stadium, Shah Alam, Malaysia | Malaysia | 1–0 | 2–0 | Friendly |
| 33 | 57 | 2 July 2014 | Gò Đậu Stadium, Thủ Dầu Một, Vietnam | Myanmar | 3–0 | 6–0 | Friendly |
| 34 | 57 | 2 July 2014 | Gò Đậu Stadium, Thủ Dầu Một, Vietnam | Myanmar | 4–0 | 6–0 | Friendly |
| 35 | 57 | 2 July 2014 | Gò Đậu Stadium, Thủ Dầu Một, Vietnam | Myanmar | 5–0 | 6–0 | Friendly |
| 36 | 58 | 6 September 2014 | Lạch Tray Stadium, Haiphong, Vietnam | Hong Kong | 3–1 | 3–1 | Friendly |
| 37 | 61 | 22 November 2014 | Mỹ Đình National Stadium, Hanoi, Vietnam | Indonesia | 2–1 | 2–2 | 2014 AFF Championship |
| 38 | 62 | 25 November 2014 | Mỹ Đình National Stadium, Hanoi, Vietnam | Laos | 2–0 | 3–0 | 2014 AFF Championship |
| 39 | 65 | 11 December 2014 | Mỹ Đình National Stadium, Hanoi, Vietnam | Malaysia | 1–2‡ | 2–4 | 2014 AFF Championship |
| 40 | 65 | 11 December 2014 | Mỹ Đình National Stadium, Hanoi, Vietnam | Malaysia | 2–4 | 2–4 | 2014 AFF Championship |
| 41 | 69 | 8 October 2015 | Mỹ Đình National Stadium, Hanoi, Vietnam | Iraq | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC) |
| 42 | 71 | 24 March 2016 | Mỹ Đình National Stadium, Hanoi, Vietnam | Chinese Taipei | 1–1 | 4–1 | 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC) |
| 43 | 71 | 24 March 2016 | Mỹ Đình National Stadium, Hanoi, Vietnam | Chinese Taipei | 4–1 | 4–1 | 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC) |
| 44 | 73 | 31 May 2016 | Mỹ Đình National Stadium, Hanoi, Vietnam | Syria | 1–0 | 2–0 | Friendly |
| 45 | 74 | 3 June 2016 | Thuwunna Stadium, Yangon, Myanmar | Hong Kong | 1–1 | 2–2 (4–3 pen.) | 2016 AYA Bank Cup |
| 46 | 74 | 3 June 2016 | Thuwunna Stadium, Yangon, Myanmar | Hong Kong | 2–1 | 2–2 (4–3 pen.) | 2016 AYA Bank Cup |
| 47 | 75 | 6 June 2016 | Thuwunna Stadium, Yangon, Myanmar | Singapore | 1–0 | 3–0 (a.e.t.) | 2016 AYA Bank Cup |
| 48 | 76 | 6 October 2016 | Thống Nhất Stadium, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam | North Korea | 2–1 | 5–2 | Friendly |
| 49 | 78 | 8 November 2016 | Mỹ Đình National Stadium, Hanoi, Vietnam | Indonesia | 1–1 | 3–2 | Friendly |
| 50 | 79 | 20 November 2016 | Thuwunna Stadium, Yangon, Myanmar | Myanmar | 2–1 | 2–1 | 2016 AFF Championship |
| 51 | 81 | 26 November 2016 | Wunna Theikdi Stadium, Naypyidaw, Myanmar | Cambodia | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2016 AFF Championship |

## Playing style

Công Vinh is widely considered one of the best and well-rounded players in Vietnam and Southeast Asia. He is known for his exceptionally speed and hardworking, his ideal position is second striker. However, he is also deployed as a left winger or center forward thanks to his pace and exceptional sprinting. In spite of his 1,72 m height, Công Vinh is well known for his aerial ability. Besides, he is also a dead-ball specialist.
His weakness in playing style is that he cannot play well as a lone striker in tactical systems using only one forward because of his slender physique, which was proven in AFF Cup 2012. His disappointing performance in this tournament is an example when Coach Phan Thanh Hung deployed him play as a central forward in the 4–2–3–1 formation.
After his ACL injury in 2010, Công Vinh simplized his playing style when most of his goals came from his positioning and one-touch finishing.
Additionally, Công Vinh has stated that he idolises Luís Figo and Thierry Henry. His favourite approach is to attack the box from both flanks and attempt to strike or create scoring opportunities for his teammates.

## Honors

In 2009, Công Vinh ranked number five on Goal.com's Top Ten Most Promising Youngsters in Asian Football. In March 2009, he was given the Vietnamese Bronze Ball 2008, also holding the record for most goals scored in a single season by a Vietnamese player in the V.League for several seasons. By May 2010, he was the top Vietnamese goal-scorer in the league's history, also ranking second in the all-time top scorers table. On 22 March 2014, Công Vinh became the first player of the Vietnam football league to score 100 goals when Song Lam Nghe An won 3–1 against Hai Phong.

## Personal life

Rumors surfaced on 2 January 2009 that Công Vinh had been dating Vietnamese singer Thủy Tiên as they were spotted together on multiple occasions. During an interview before leaving Vietnam to join Leixões, Công Vinh revealed to the press that he and the singer are dating. They got engaged two years later. The couple had their first child, a daughter, on 2 January 2013 – the same day when the couple first met.

### Manager

After announcing his official retirement from professional football, Công Vinh joined Ho Chi Minh City FC as the deputy manager of the club, a role he served until May 2018.

## Controversy

On 21 March 2010, in the match between Hà Nội T&T and TĐCS Đồng Tháp in the 6th round of the 2010 V-League on Cao Lãnh field, Công Vinh was unhappy with the referee's decision and bowed to the main referee Vũ Bảo Linh and was given a yellow card. After the match, Công Vinh apologized but was still punished by the VFF Disciplinary Committee with a 6-match suspension and a fine of 10 million dong (later reduced to 3 matches), There were even rumors that Công Vinh threatened to retire after receiving the penalty, which he had to correct several times. The Hà Nội T&T management also stripped him of his captain's armband after that match.
On 23 May 2018, Công Vinh and journalist Trần Minh released his autobiography "Lê Công Vinh: Phút 89". The book caused controversy in the Vietnamese football community when Công Vinh included details such as Tấn Tài not passing the ball to him, coach Riedl rarely using him, or having conflicts with his predecessors such as Lê Huỳnh Đức or coach Lê Thụy Hải. Many of the people mentioned in the book expressed their dissatisfaction, saying that Công Vinh was making up stories, and even announced that they were "cutting ties" with him.
In early June 2021, Công Vinh appeared in two promotional videos for an online football streaming application called BK8. However, the application is actually an illegal gambling site. Công Vinh's representative later confirmed that the former captain of the Vietnamese national team was the person in the video, and said: "They promised that it was only an online TV application with a completely different domain name, and not related to gambling. However, we received information that gambling websites are using Công Vinh's image illegally. Công Vinh's side has contacted them to handle the issue since last week, but has not received a response. We are collecting evidence and working with lawyers." Công Vinh also apologized to the public and announced that he would never again accept an endorsement or advertisement for any football-related application.

## Honours

Hanoi T&T
* V.League 1: 2010
* Vietnamese Super Cup: 2010
Becamex Binh Duong
* V.League 1: 2015
* Vietnamese National Cup: 2015
* Vietnamese Super Cup: 2015
Vietnam U23
* Southeast Asian Games: runner-up 2003, 2005
Vietnam
* AFF Championship: 2008

### Individuals

* Vietnamese Golden Ball: 2004, 2006, 2007
* Best Young Player of Vietnam Football Federation: 2004
* Best Goal in the ASEAN Football Championship: 2014
* V-League Team of the season: 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013