Who are the 3 new recruits in coach Kim Sang Sik's 'revolution'?

Nguyen Nhat Minh, Nguyen Hieu Minh and Nguyen Xuan Bac are three completely new faces of the Vietnamese team called up on September 30.

Nguyen Nhat Minh (red shirt) in the victory over U23 Indonesia at the 2025 Southeast Asian U23 Championship - Photo: ANH KHOA

On the afternoon of September 30, the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) announced the list of 24 players for the Vietnam national team. Head coach Kim Sang Sik has carried out a "revolution" in the team's personnel by promoting a series of faces from the U23 Vietnam team that just won the 2025 Southeast Asian U23 Championship and qualified for the 2026 Asian U23 Championship.

In the U23 group, except for Tran Trung Kien, Khuat Van Khang, Nguyen Thanh Nhan and Nguyen Dinh Bac who have been called up to the Vietnam national team many times before, the three new faces appearing for the first time are Nguyen Nhat Minh, Nguyen Hieu Minh and Nguyen Xuan Bac.

Nguyen Nhat Minh - the steel shield of Hai Phong Club

Born in 2003 in Hai Phong city, Nguyen Nhat Minh was selected to study at Nutifood Academy, and showed outstanding performances at national youth tournaments. 2022 was the first time Nhat Minh played professionally, when he was loaned to Long An to play in the First Division.

In 2023, Nhat Minh was called back by Hai Phong Club President Van Tran Hoan to play for his hometown team. After a period of sitting on the bench, Minh quickly scored points with head coach Chu Dinh Nghiem, competing fairly with seniors Pham Hoai Duong, Pham Manh Hung and Bui Tien Dung, to win a starting position for the port city team in the V-League from the 2023 - 2024 season.

This is the turning point of Nhat Minh's career. In the last 2 seasons, Minh has been a key player in the Hai Phong FC's 2-center defense. With a height of 1m78, along with the ability to read situations, intercept the ball and command the defense, Nhat Minh has shown his solidity and maturity, contributing to many important victories of the port city team.

Joining the U23 Vietnam team for the first time in 2024, Nhat Minh also showed his ability to join the attack with his strong left-footed crosses. He surpassed many opponents of the same age and with good ability such as Nguyen Manh Hung, Nguyen Duc Anh to win the starting position as a left-sided center-back since 2025 under coach Kim Sang Sik.

Nguyen Hieu Minh is a promising central defender of Vietnamese football - Photo: NGOC LE

Nguyen Hieu Minh - the pillar of the new V-League rookie

Hieu Minh was born in 2004 in Hanoi , is an excellent product of PVF Center. Initially, Hieu Minh was trained to play as a midfielder, later the coaches moved him down to play as a center back to take advantage of his height and footwork ability to control the game. Currently, Hieu Minh is 1m84 tall.

Hieu Minh is the youngest player to ever play for Pho Hien (formerly known as PVF-CAND). He made his debut for the team in the 2022 First Division, at the age of 17. For many years after that, Hieu Minh was a mainstay in PVF-CAND's defense.

In early 2024, along with Nguyen Nhat Minh, Nguyen Hieu Minh was called up by coach Philippe Troussier to join U23 Vietnam for a trial. At this time, Hieu Minh has only shown potential and has not been able to win a starting position in the 2024 U23 Asian Cup finals.

The 2024 - 2025 season is a big turning point in Hieu Minh's career, when he was named in the typical squad. That is the ticket to bring Hieu Minh back to U23 Vietnam and convince coach Kim Sang Sik.

Although not having a regular promotion ticket, PVF-CAND Club still participates in V-League thanks to the slot left by Quang Nam who quit the tournament. That further opens up the prospect of Hieu Minh playing as a main player in U23 Vietnam in the near future.

Nguyen Xuan Bac in the U23 Vietnam shirt - Photo: NGOC LE

Nguyen Xuan Bac - a new discovery in the U23 Vietnam midfield

Nguyen Xuan Bac is one of the key players in the journey to win the 2025 Southeast Asian U23 Championship, and the achievement of qualifying for the 2026 Asian U23 Finals of U23 Vietnam. He took the starting position from Nguyen Thai Son, pushing the player who had played for the Vietnamese team many times before to the bench in just a few months.

Born in 2003 in Phu Tho, Xuan Bac was also trained at PVF and developed his career at PVF-CAND Club. Together with Hieu Minh, Xuan Bac has been a regular starter in the First Division for the last 3 seasons, and was also included in the typical squad of the 2024 - 2025 season.

Xuan Bac's football thinking, technical and tactical skills, and all-round offensive and defensive abilities were perfected under the guidance of Portuguese coach Mauro Jeronimo. On the field, Bac is always one of the players who moves the most in the team thanks to his strong physical foundation. These are the qualities that coach Kim really needs in his players.

The two matches against Nepal in the third qualifying round of the 2027 Asian Cup in October will be an opportunity for coach Kim Sang Sik to test Nhat Minh, Hieu Minh and Xuan Bac. Their presence in the national team at this time also means that these three players are being planned to play in the main squad at the 33rd SEA Games taking place in December in Thailand.

List of Vietnam team gathered for FIFA Days in October - Photo: VFF

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Source: https://tuoitre.vn/3-tan-binh-trong-cuoc-cach-mang-cua-hlv-kim-sang-sik-la-ai-20250930152150833.htm