The next generation of the Vietnamese team has emerged.

Success at the 2025 Southeast Asian U.23 tournament is an opportunity for the U.23 Vietnam team to be ready to open the door to the national team.

N "Rough Gems" Are Being Planned

The 1-0 victory over U.23 Indonesia helped U.23 Vietnam complete a hat-trick of Southeast Asian championships. Besides the achievement factor, the bright spot of the young Vietnamese team in this playground is that many promising faces have emerged. Among them, there are names that coach Kim Sang-sik once promoted to the Vietnamese national team to learn and gain experience, now shining brightly. That is the duo Trung Kien and Ly Duc. Trung Kien was promoted to the Vietnamese national team by Mr. Kim at the end of 2024 in the role of goalkeeper number 3. Although he has not been able to compete for the starting position, training with goalkeeper coach Lee Woon-jae (Korean football legend) and senior players such as Nguyen Filip and Dinh Trieu has helped Trung Kien progress rapidly. Two saves with his feet in the final match, along with a series of solid and effective entries and exits, show his great potential. With Nguyen Filip now 33 years old and Dinh Trieu 34, Trung Kien's chance to become the number 1 goalkeeper of the Vietnam national team is wide open. If he continues to maintain his form in the 2026 U.23 Asian qualifiers and the 33rd SEA Games, he can even compete for a starting position in the AFF Cup next year.

Some U.23 Vietnam players, including Dinh Bac (right), will be given the opportunity by Mr. Kim to join the national team in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers.

Photo: DONG NGUYEN KHANG

Center back Ly Duc also had a stable tournament. Since being discovered by coach Kim Sang-sik and called up to the Vietnam national team in March, Ly Duc has maintained his development momentum. In the U.23 Southeast Asia tournament, with 3 out of 4 matches against weaker opponents, he did not have much room to perform. However, in the final, against U.23 Indonesia, who attacked better and had many players of ideal height, he showed the image of a defensive leader with the ability to compete fiercely and maintain position effectively.

Ly Duc is going to Hanoi soon.

Photo: Nguyen Khang

Among the talents that Mr. Kim has nurtured in the Vietnamese national team, it is worth noting that Quoc Viet and Dinh Bac also played well at the U.23 Southeast Asia tournament. Dinh Bac won the title of Best Player of the tournament, while Quoc Viet won the third U.23 Southeast Asia Cup in his career thanks to his energetic and proactive performance. Meanwhile, new talents such as Anh Quan, Phi Hoang, Xuan Bac, and Cong Phuong have all proven their abilities and are capable of being given opportunities by Mr. Kim in the upcoming training sessions.

MR. KIM 'S STRATEGY

After 1 month of training, coach Kim Sang-sik clearly understood his students' abilities, in terms of professional level, lifestyle, training style and battle spirit.

The way Mr. Kim understands his students is shown in the fact that most of the Korean coach's personnel arrangements are effective. On the other hand, the U.23 Vietnam players also have time to understand Mr. Kim's playing philosophy, with similarities to the Vietnam national team. Later, if they have the opportunity to join the national team, the young generation will absorb quickly, meeting the requirements of the coaching staff.

However, Vietnamese youth football has never lacked cases of "surplus" in youth tournaments, but "lack" in the national team. There have been young talents who have been forced to mature, meaning they have played for the Vietnamese national team when they are not yet qualified enough, leading to their decline. But there are also rough gems that need to be polished and accept risks to become precious gems.

Vietnamese football has found a generation full of potential, with stars born from 2003 - 2005. Creating a strategy to interweave young players with a reasonable density is a problem that coach Kim Sang-sik and his colleagues need to calculate in the coming time.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/lop-ke-can-o-doi-tuyen-viet-nam-da-lo-dien-185250730212715159.htm