Mr. Kim will 'turn the Vietnamese team upside down': Shocking choice in the match against Nepal?

The two matches against Nepal (ranked 176th in the world) are a golden opportunity for coach Kim Sang-sik to both seek victory and help the Vietnamese team find new solutions.

Vietnam team testing U.23 factor?

The Vietnamese team will face Nepal in the third (October 9) and fourth (October 14) matches in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers next month, with both matches taking place at home.

After 2 matches, coach Kim Sang-sik's team only has 3 points (won 5-0 against Laos and lost 0-4 against Malaysia). The 3-point gap and 5-goal difference against Malaysia put the Vietnamese team in a difficult position. Before rematching their opponent in March 2026, Hoang Duc and his teammates must win two matches against Nepal (October) and the match against Laos (November) to get 9 points, to maintain hope of chasing.

Vietnam team needs to be open to change

PHOTO: NGOC LINH

That puts a double task on Mr. Kim. First is to win, and then, to mold the Vietnamese team with both old and new elements, to shape the human picture for the transition period next year.

The first advantage is that coach Kim Sang-sik is always open to experimentation. He is willing to arrange Ngoc Quang, Hai Long, Vi Hao, Dinh Trieu, Ngoc Tan... to start at the AFF Cup 2024, even though these players were not used before, and had never even played for the Vietnamese team. When on the coaching bench is a commander who dares to try, dares to make mistakes and dares to change, the Vietnamese team will be open to any changes.

At the same time, coach Kim Sang-sik has a quality "reserve" force to renew the team. That is the U.23 Vietnam team that has become more mature and grown up after 7 matches at the U.23 Southeast Asia 2025 tournament and the U.23 Asia 2026 qualifiers.

During the training sessions in September, October and November 2023, Mr. Kim emphasized the need to give young players opportunities to pave the way for the future of Vietnamese football. However, at that time, the young generation had few starting players at the club, and there was no real playground for Mr. Kim to test their abilities.

However, the situation is different now. Coach Kim Sang-sik has two tournaments to evaluate his players' abilities. Sharing with Thanh Nien Newspaper, the Korean coach emphasized that "he has determined the young players worthy of being called up to the national team" in the training sessions in October and November.

Minh Khoa (number 9) was given a starting position by coach Kim Sang-sik on his first call-up to the national team.

PHOTO: NGOC LINH

Young stars are also gradually finding their place, such as Dinh Bac (playing in 3 arenas with CAHN Club this season), Trung Kien, Quang Kiet (starting for HAGL), Hieu Minh, Xuan Bac, Thanh Nhan (playing with PVF-CAND in V-League), Van Khang, Van Truong, Thai Son, Nhat Minh (still playing regularly). Although these are only modest steps, they are worth noting.

Mr. Kim has in his hands a group of players with beautiful physique (9/23 players playing in the Asian qualifiers are over 1.8 m tall), technical skills and "toughness".

Matches with weaker opponents like Nepal and Laos are opportunities for the Vietnamese team to quickly gain an advantage in the score, then test out players who are full of ambition to show themselves.

Mr. Kim's logic

Coach Kim Sang-sik always has a way of using players beyond the experts' predictions. For example, he let Vi Hao play continuously in the AFF Cup 2024, even though the striker born in 2003 is the "youngest" face on the attack line, has many mistakes in handling the ball, and missed opportunities.

Will the U.23 generation "en masse" join the national team next month?

PHOTO: MINH TU

However, Mr. Kim saw the value of his student. Vi Hao was in the top 10 players with the most defensive actions (tackles, interceptions, marking) at the AFF Cup, and among them, he was the only striker (the rest were defenders).

For Mr. Kim, Vi Hao is the "shield" of defense in the front line, helping the Vietnamese team put pressure on and prevent the opponent from developing the ball. The striker of Becamex TP.HCM runs extremely hard and always follows the tactics. Vi Hao's value may not be widely recognized, but Mr. Kim sees it. That is enough.

There are still many "rough gems" in the U.23 Vietnam team waiting to be trusted and recognized. Coach Kim Sang-sik has seen enough potential in his students, now is the time to combine the old and new generations to restart competitiveness, create a different tactical wind and new motivation. The Vietnam team needs to take advantage of the remaining matches this year to make a change in personnel and playing style, before playing the "final" qualifying round with Malaysia next year.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/ong-kim-se-xoi-tung-doi-tuyen-viet-nam-lua-chon-soc-o-tran-gap-nepal-185250926105720584.htm