Chinese newspaper evaluates U23 Vietnam's draw as controversial

(Dan Tri) - Sohu newspaper said that the group with the participation of U23 Vietnam in the 2026 U23 Asian tournament has caused great controversy.

According to the draw results of the U23 Asian Cup, U23 Vietnam will be in the same group with U23 Saudi Arabia, U23 Jordan and U23 Kyrgyzstan. Meanwhile, U23 China is in the same group with U23 Thailand, U23 Iraq and U23 Australia.

Sohu newspaper said that the group of U23 Vietnam caused a lot of controversy (Photo: Minh Quan).

In that situation, Sohu newspaper said that Group A of U23 Vietnam is the most controversial group. This newspaper headlined: "The results of the draw for the U23 Asian Cup cause dissatisfaction".

In particular, the Chinese newspaper commented: "The draw of the host Saudi Arabia has caused great controversy. With home advantage, Saudi Arabia is of course in the top seed group, but the fact that they avoided many bright candidates such as Korea, Australia and Qatar has created many doubts.

Saudi Arabia's inclusion of the U23 Vietnam, U23 Jordan and U23 Kyrgyzstan teams has caused skepticism among the public. Many opinions believe that this can ensure the host team a ticket to the next round.

Commenting on the group stage of China U23, Sohu newspaper wrote: “China U23 was lucky to avoid many strong teams such as Japan, South Korea, Uzbekistan and Iran as well as host Saudi Arabia. Instead, the team was only in the same group with Iraq.

Although U23 Australia is very strong, it is not too much of an opponent for U23 China. As U23 Thailand is weaker, U23 China can confidently win against this opponent."

Meanwhile, QQ newspaper asked the question: “Why did the host Saudi Arabia not draw U23 China into group A? Is this a sign that they recognize the strength of U23 China? In the fourth seed group, U23 Kyrgyzstan is clearly easier to play against host Saudi Arabia than U23 China.”

U23 China feels lucky to be in the same group with U23 Thailand, U23 Iraq, U23 Australia (Photo: Sohu).

Although in the same group with the host team U23 Saudi Arabia, the chance of U23 Vietnam to continue is not small. The remaining opponents such as U23 Jordan and U23 Kyrgyzstan are not too difficult for coach Kim Sang Sik's team.

According to the schedule, U23 Vietnam will enter the opening match of the U23 Asian Cup against U23 Jordan at 6:30 p.m. on January 6. Then, on January 9, U23 Vietnam will face U23 Kyrgyzstan at 9:00 p.m. At 11:30 p.m. on January 12, coach Kim Sang Sik's team will clash with the host team Saudi Arabia.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-thao/bao-trung-quoc-danh-gia-bang-dau-cua-u23-viet-nam-gay-tranh-cai-20251004125340840.htm