Mr. Kim unlocked U.23 Vietnam, sharpening the attacking strategy

Coach Kim Sang-sik currently owns a U.23 Vietnam attack with a variety of styles, but needs to sharpen their attacks to conquer the 2025 SEA Games and the 2026 U.23 Asian Cup.

Dinh Bac and Van Khang at the 2025 Southeast Asian U.23 tournament

Photo: Dong Nguyen Khang

Strange habits of U.23 Vietnam

The U.23 Vietnam team is currently on a 7-match winning streak in official matches, scoring 12 goals and only conceding 2. Notably, coach Kim Sang-sik has a diverse attacking style.

According to statistics, except for striker Dinh Bac and center back Hieu Minh who each scored 2 goals, the remaining 8 goals were divided equally among 8 names, showing that everyone was ready to score for the team.

This parameter shows the uniformity and diversity in the attacks in the hands of Mr. Kim. Of course, that also brings concern that the U.23 Vietnam team has not found a main striker.

Ngoc My has scored 1 goal for U.23 Vietnam

Photo: Minh Tu

This resulted in 5/7 matches in which the U.23 Vietnam team only won by a 1-goal difference, including 3 1-0 wins and 2 narrow 2-1 wins.

It can be seen that the Vietnam U.23 team lacks sharp strikers like Quang Hai at the U.23 Asian Cup in Changzhou in 2018, or Tien Linh - Duc Chinh in the 2019 SEA Games gold medal, Xuan Son in the 2024 AFF Cup championship...

The habit of "stingy" with goals of the U.23 Vietnam team comes from human reasons, plus coach Kim Sang-sik often chooses a solid playing style, wears down the opponent's stamina before accelerating and finishing in the second half.

Mr. Kim sharpens the attack for U.23 Vietnam

Mr. Kim needs to improve scoring performance for U.23 Vietnam

Photo: Minh Tu

The solid football mindset was clearly shown in the U.23 Asia qualifiers when U.23 Vietnam stifled the play, forcing U.23 Yemen to only have 3 shots, compared to 8 by U.23 Vietnam. U.23 Singapore even only had 1 shot (U.23 Vietnam had 7), the shooting ratio against U.23 Bangladesh was 12-2.

But to win the 33rd SEA Games gold medal in Thailand and go far in the 2026 U.23 Asian Cup, defense alone is not enough. The U.23 Vietnam team will have to sharpen their attacks to finish off opponents from the few opportunities available.

The reality at Viet Tri Stadium in the 2026 U.23 Asian qualifiers showed that our strikers created many opportunities but their shots continuously bounced out of the goal, either because they handled the ball inaccurately or simply because they were in a hurry and shot too cleanly.

Ngoc My is integrating well into the Vietnam U.23 team.

Photo: Minh Tu

In early October, Mr. Kim Sang-sik will lead the Vietnamese team to play two 2027 Asian Cup qualifying matches against Nepal at Binh Duong Stadium (October 9) and Thong Nhat Stadium (October 14).

At the same time, interim coach Dinh Hong Vinh will be tasked with further polishing the U.23 Vietnam attack, especially the coordination close to the opponent's penalty area to improve the ability to convert opportunities into goals.

In addition, Mr. Kim will also find ways to encourage, even provoke, by calling Dinh Bac, Van Khang, Thanh Nhan, Le Viktor, Ngoc My... to the Vietnam team at the FIFA Days in October. The focus is to help them be more confident in the final stages.

A volley by Xuan Bac in the U.23 Vietnam shirt

Photo: Minh Tu

Being able to practice and compete together, witnessing neat but reasonable handling at the right time and place from veteran players like Tien Linh and Tuan Hai will create inspiration to help the U.23 Vietnam players perfect their finishing skills.

Another very important point, Mr. Kim will need to take advantage of the fact that the entire U.23 Vietnam team is playing in the V-League to continue doing psychological work, which is his forte, helping young strikers to be calmer and more confident when stepping onto the field to best demonstrate their abilities.

Finally, the upcoming training period will be an important stage to determine the main attacking frame, from which the pillars will hone together to find the necessary understanding, helping to increase the speed and effectiveness of coordination close to the opponent's penalty area.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/ong-kim-mo-khoa-u23-viet-nam-mai-sac-mieng-danh-tan-cong-185250925201845947.htm