Striker Van Quyen had two operations in Singapore on September 27. Doctors said he must relax for six months.

Vietnamese doctors initially said that Van Quyen suffered from a gentle wound on his right ankle. They said Quyen only needs a minor surgery and rest for two months.

However, doctors at Singapore’s ParkWay Hospital discovered that Van Quyen’s injury was more complicated. They conducted two operations on September 27 for Quyen, which cost nearly $20,000. The Vietnam Football Federation, Song Lam Nghe An club and a sponsor will pay this sum. Quyen will stay at this hospital for five days after his operations.

His physicians ordered him to rest for six months, so Quyen will lose the chance to join the ASEAN Football Cup or AFF Cup 2010 this December.

The Vietnam national football squad’s chief coach, Henrique Calisto, was not surprised. “It is good that he was treated in the best way. With such treatment, he can play elite football. Van Quyen was in my plan for AFF Cup 2010, but now I will have to change it,” Calisto admitted.

Van Quyen was called “the golden boy” of Vietnam’s football. He was the most outstanding player in the U16 team in 2000, which entered the semi-final round of the Asian Football Championship. In 2002, he was convened to the national team to attend the Tiger Cup (AFF Cup at present). In 2005, Quyen was involved in a match-fixing scandal at the Southeast Asian Games and was suspended until January 2009.

Since then Quyen has not played football very well. However, Calisto still called him up to the national team in August 2010. After two drills, Quyen incurred his wound.

PV