{"id":6688,"date":"2017-09-04T20:00:52","date_gmt":"2017-09-04T11:00:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/?p=6688"},"modified":"2017-09-04T17:56:47","modified_gmt":"2017-09-04T08:56:47","slug":"football-tribe-asia-xi-august-2017","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/2017\/09\/04\/football-tribe-asia-xi-august-2017\/","title":{"rendered":"Football Tribe’s Asian XI of the Month – August 2017"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the second edition of this feature, Football Tribe is proud to highlight the top players across the continent as we present our Asia XI for August 2017.<\/p>\n

The XI was compiled by contributors from all of Tribe’s editions based on domestic and national team play during the month.<\/p>\n

Who made the cut? Click to the next slide to find out.<\/p>\n

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Goalkeeper – Nont Muangngam<\/span> (Chiangrai United, Thailand U-22)<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Chiangrai United backup was the only Thailand player to feature in every minute of their SEA Games campaign, helping the reigning champions successfully defend their title with six clean sheets in seven matches.<\/p>\n

Muangngam showed a keen sense of positioning and was more than capable of defending in the air, assets which could serve him well in next year\u2019s AFF Suzuki Cup.<\/p>\n

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Defender – Matthew Davies (Pahang United, Malaysia U-22)<\/b><\/p>\n

Davies, who last year became the youngest captain in Pahang FC\u2019s history at 21, played a key role in Malaysia\u2019s silver medal finish at the SEA Games. His one-on-one defending allowed the hosts to finish with a perfect record in the group stage before a 1-0 win against regional rivals Indonesia secured a berth in the final against Thailand.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Defender: Gao Zhunyi (Hebei China Fortune, China NT)<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

The 21-year-old, a rare example of a Chinese player who cut his teeth in the J.League, has been a major asset for Hebei China Fortune in this year\u2019s campaign.<\/span><\/p>\n

His precise tackles and match-reading abilities were a big part of the side\u2019s three clean sheets in August. While Gao watched China\u2019s 1-0 win over Uzbekistan from the bench, he is emerging as one of the country\u2019s most promising defenders.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Defender: Vu Van Thanh (HAGL FC, Vietnam U-22)<\/b><\/p>\n

The wing back had an impressive run at the 2017 SEA Games, delivering solid performances and scoring a goal for a Vietnam side who were disappointed to exit the group stage in third place with a 3-1-1 record.<\/span><\/p>\n

Fans will be looking forward to Van Thanh\u2019s return to HAGL FC, where he has scored six goals in the current V-League season.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Attacking Midfielder: Aung Thu (Yadanarbon FC, Myanmar U-22)<\/b><\/p>\n

The Yadanarbon FC striker had an outstanding performance in the SEA Games, earning joint-top scorer honors with four goals and pushing Myanmar to the semi-finals.<\/span><\/p>\n

Aung not only reaffirmed his speed and finishing ability on the pitch, but also his high work rate and defensive abilities. The 21-year-old is without a doubt a player to watch in Southeast Asia going forward.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Central Midfielder: Augusto Cesar (Sanat Naft)<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Brazilian, a former Tractor Sazi player, returned to Iran this summer after a year away and now conducts the midfield at Sanat Naft. Cesar recorded three goals for the Persian Gulf Pro League side in August, including two goals in the last 15 minutes of a dramatic 2-2 draw against Zob Ahan.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Central Midfielder: Takahiro Ogihara (Yokohama F. Marinos)<\/strong><\/p>\n

After all but disappearing in the 2016 season, 25-year-old Ogihara has enjoyed a dramatic resurgence at his new club Yokohama F. Marinos where he has become a central figure in the starting lineup.<\/span><\/p>\n

In addition to scoring the opener in the team\u2019s 2-0 win at Consadole Sapporo, his game-winning assist against FC Tokyo in Round 24 allowed the J.League co-founders to end August with four wins and one draw, extending their unbeaten streak in the J1 to an incredible 15 matches.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Attacking Midfielder: Mu Kanazaki (Kashima Antlers)<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Kashima Antlers star netted three goals and provided three assists in August, contributing to a 4-0-1 record for the current J1 leaders and defending champions.<\/span><\/p>\n

The 28-year-old currently leads the club with nine goals scored, and could yet beat his career-high of 13 in the remaining 10 rounds of the season. While Kanazaki has been left out of the national team for over a year following a bench-side confrontation with former Antlers coach Masatada Ishii, calls for his return to the Samurai Blue are beginning to increase.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Forward:\u00a0<\/strong>Ezequiel Lavezzi (Hebei China Fortune)<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

The Argentine star had a monster August for Hebei, scoring five of the team’s nine goals in August as they romped to an undefeated 3-1-0 record and rose to third place in the Chinese Super League.<\/span><\/p>\n

After losing the second half of the 2016 season to a broken arm suffered in the Copa America, the 32-year-old has bounced back this year and could give the Qinhuangdao side their first-ever AFC Champions League berth under former Manchester City boss Manuel Pellegrini.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Forward:\u00a0<\/strong>Sylvano Comvalius (Bali United)<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

The Dutch striker netted 10 times for Bali United this month, punishing Persipura and Semen Padang with one each, Madura United with a hat-trick, and Mitra Kukar with a jaw-dropping five goals.<\/span><\/p>\n

Comvalius, a journeyman who has played in Scotland, Germany, and Ukraine, ended the month with a Liga 1-best 23 goals and seems likely to run away with the golden boot thanks to his strength in the air and determined play style.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Omar Kharbin (KSA Al Hilal, Syria)<\/b><\/p>\n

Known for his 2009 professional debut at the tender age of 15, Kharbin is now a key player for Saudi Arabia\u2019s Al Hilal where he scored two goals for in the opening rounds of the Saudi Professional league.<\/span><\/p>\n

The 23-year-old found the back of the net twice in Syria\u2019s stunning 3-1 win over Qatar, keeping his team in contention for a spot in the 2018 FIFA World Cup. Kharbin\u2019s accuracy and raw power behind the ball are quickly turning him into the stuff of West Asian footballing legend.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Who should have made the cut in August? Let us know on our official Facebook<\/a> and Twitter<\/a>\u00a0pages, and don’t forget to look back on our Best XI for July<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In the second edition of this feature, Football Tribe is proud to highlight the top players across the continent as we present our Asia XI for August 2017. The XI was compiled by contributors from all of Tribe’s editions based on domestic and national team play during the month. Who made the cut? Click to the next slide to find out.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":90,"featured_media":6708,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[25,28,30,856,26,27],"tags":[971,813,976,385,204,970,969,973,968,975,95,974,972,143],"class_list":["post-6688","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-asia","category-central-asia","category-east-asia","category-rest-of-asia","category-southeast-asia","category-west-asia","tag-augusto-cesar","tag-aung-thu","tag-best-xi","tag-ezequiel-lavezzi","tag-featured","tag-gao-zhunyi","tag-matthew-davies","tag-mu-kanazaki","tag-nont-muangngam","tag-omar-kharbin","tag-slider","tag-sylvano-comvalius","tag-takahiro-ogihara","tag-vu-van-thanh"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6688","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/90"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6688"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6688\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6708"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6688"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6688"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6688"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}