U23 Vietnam needs a breakthrough

The journey of U23 Vietnam in the two most recent major tournaments, the U23 Asian qualifiers and the U23 Southeast Asian Championship, shows that coach Kim Sang Sik is maintaining a stable squad and a relatively disciplined playing style to complete the set goals.

However, if we look closely at the two official tournaments that U23 Vietnam participated in, coach Kim Sang Sik's team still lacked the breakthrough to resolve the match in a faster, neater and simpler way.

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Although U23 Vietnam has achieved good results, the difference in playing style is quite low.

The U23 Vietnam team's style of play relies heavily on collective strength but lacks individual variation. Against opponents of equal standing, Kim Sang Sik's players often have difficulty controlling the game and finding their way into the goal.

Of course, if they want to reach a new level and compete equally with the top teams in the continent, U23 Vietnam needs more than just an old squad. And the source of overseas Vietnamese players is the biggest hope for that personnel revolution.

But why can't Mr. Kim?

The hope is great, but the reality in V-League 2025/26 is painting a completely opposite picture. Young overseas Vietnamese players who are expected to soon become pillars for U23 Vietnam are still struggling to find a place at the club level.

Statistics don't lie. Vadim Nguyen (20 years old) only played 63 minutes forSHB Da Nang, Tran Thanh Trung (20 years old) only played 25 minutes in Ninh Binh, or Brandon Ly (19 years old) only played 4 minutes in CAHN's shirt.

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Expected factors like Tran Thanh Trung have not met Kim Sang Sik's expectations in terms of expertise.

The best performer is Damian Vu Thanh An (22 years old) with 1 goal for The Cong Viettel , but only with 21 minutes of play. More worrying is the case of Lee Williams (19 years old), who has not yet been registered to play by his club.

Coach Kim Sang Sik cannot build a playing style for U23 Vietnam around factors that he himself does not have enough data to evaluate the full capacity in a top football environment. Therefore, all Vietnamese players of age who are in the SEA Games or further, the U23 Asian Cup will need to prove themselves more.

Because the "leverage" from overseas Vietnamese players is still too weak, the Korean coach is forced to return to the safe option: continue to trust the old framework, the players who are familiar and are playing regularly. This ensures stability, but also means that U23 Vietnam cannot have the breakthrough that experts are waiting for.

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/vi-dau-hlv-kim-sang-sik-chua-the-co-don-bay-cho-u23-viet-nam-2446220.html