International U.16 rankings: U.16 Vietnam ranked third
The 2025 CFA Team China International U.16 Tournament concluded tonight (June 1), with the final match between China U.16 and Australia U.16 to finalize the overall rankings.
After winning the first two matches, U.16 Australia has 6 points. Meanwhile, U.16 China only has 4 points. The home team needs to defeat U.16 Australia to be crowned champion.
With home field advantage and overwhelming determination, the young Chinese players achieved their goal. China U16 defeated Australia U16 with a score of 5-2, thereby closing the tournament with 7 points after 3 matches to win the U16 International Championship.
U.16 Vietnam ended the tournament in third place. PHOTO: VFF
U.16 Australia finished second with 6 points. U.16 Vietnam finished third with 4 points. Coach Cristiano Roland and his team won U.16 Saudi Arabia (2-1), drew U.16 China (2-2) and lost to U.16 Australia (1-2). U.16 Vietnam was the only team that did not lose to U.16 China in this tournament.
Saudi Arabia U16 is the last team with 3 losses. This is an unimpressive achievement for the representative from Asia's leading football country.
With their impressive performance, the Vietnam U.16 team was awarded 400 million VND by the Standing Committee of the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF). The players will return to continue training for their home clubs. This year, the team can gather for a short time to continue training, in preparation for the 2027 AFC U.17 qualifiers taking place next year.
Quang Hai's son leaves his mark
Returning to the match against U.16 Saudi Arabia, U.16 Vietnam was at a disadvantage when midfielder Van Duong was injured in the 8th minute and had to leave the field, making way for Quang Hung. Despite having to adjust personnel early, coach Cristiano Roland's students still played with great effort under pressure from their opponents.
However, in the 23rd minute, U.16 Saudi Arabia unexpectedly opened the score after seizing an opportunity from a mistake in the defense of U.16 Vietnam.
Undaunted, U.16 Vietnam quickly stabilized their formation and proactively pushed up their formation to find an equalizer. In the 29th minute, after a coordinated attack on the right wing, Sy Bach quickly escaped and crossed the ball accurately for Quang Khoi to jump high and head the ball to equalize 1-1 for U.16 Vietnam.
Nguyen Le Quang Khoi (number 18) is a promising face of U.16 Vietnam. PHOTO: BMG FOOTBALL ACADEMY
Notably, striker Nguyen Le Quang Khoi is the son of former striker Nguyen Quang Hai. 17 years after Quang Hai scored against Singapore in the semi-finals of the AFF Cup 2008, when Hai "chicken" hung up his boots to pursue a coaching career, Quang Khoi's son is starting to take the first steps in his father's footsteps. Quang Khoi joined the BMG Football Academy and is currently playing for the Ba Ria - Vung Tau youth team.
In the second half, U.16 Vietnam continued to show discipline and solidity in defense, while taking advantage of sharp counterattacks. In the 83rd minute, Chu Ngoc Nguyen Luc had a technical dribble that forced the opposing defender to commit a foul outside the penalty area. It was this player wearing the number 10 jersey who took the free kick, sealing a 2-1 victory for U.16 Vietnam.
Under the coaching of Mr. Roland, the U.16 and U.17 Vietnam teams are making rapid progress. U.17 Vietnam finished second in the CFA Team China 2024 international U.17 friendly tournament (also held in China), after defeating U.17 Uzbekistan (3-0) and U.17 Japan (1-0). In the 2025 U.17 Asian Cup finals, although U.17 Vietnam did not advance, they drew with many strong teams such as U.17 Japan, U.17 Australia and U.17 UAE with the same score of 1-1.
"The U.17 Vietnam players have shown their bravery and fighting spirit. I hope they can go far, so that one day they can wear the Vietnam national team jersey," Coach Roland confided to Thanh Nien Newspaper .
Source: https://thanhnien.vn/bang-xep-hang-u16-quoc-te-u16-viet-nam-lot-top-3-con-trai-cuu-tien-dao-quang-hai-toa-sang-185250601202942512.htm
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