Courage through every challenge
In just the last two campaigns, the 2026 AFC U23 Championship qualifiers and the 2025 Southeast Asian U23 Championship, coach Kim Sang-sik’s team has experienced all kinds of opponents. From the fiery pressing style of U23 Indonesia, the fast wing attacks of U23 Philippines, to the “concrete” defense of U23 Bangladesh or the tenacity of U23 Yemen, U23 Vietnam has the answer.
Seven consecutive wins, spanning from the Southeast Asian tournament to the Asian qualifiers, show that the adaptability of the young Vietnamese team is reaching an impressive level. Under the guidance of coach Kim Sang-sik, the U23 Vietnam team has become a multi-faceted “rubik’s cube”, able to be as soft as water but also as strong as steel, knowing when to launch a preemptive attack and when to defend with disciplined counter-attacks.
Even when missing a series of key players, U23 Vietnam still maintained a cohesive playing style. In the two most recent friendly matches against U23 Qatar, acting head coach Dinh Hong Vinh helped the team experiment with two styles: cautious in the first match, then proactively attacking in the rematch. That flexibility reflects the spirit of "no common denominator" that coach Kim is aiming for.
Coach Kim Sang-sik’s greatest strength lies in his ability to read his opponents and change tactics. He has a different approach to each match, sometimes pressing high, sometimes playing deep, sometimes changing the 3-4-3 formation to 3-5-2 to take advantage of his physical strength and ability to compete in the midfield.
In the last 7 matches, there have been 10 different players scoring for U23 Vietnam from defenders, midfielders to strikers. That number shows two things: the team does not depend on any individual and coach Kim always has a diverse attack plan. Coach Kim Sang-sik's coaching philosophy has many similarities with the Korean football style, focusing on discipline and physical strength, but also emphasizing creativity and tactical freedom. Each position on the field must know how to do many tasks from pressing, escaping pressing to quickly changing states. "The players today are more confident, have a good physical foundation and modern thinking. They learn from their own mistakes to improve themselves," a member of the coaching staff shared.
Resilience from overseas Vietnamese and domestic soldiers
On the journey towards SEA Games 33, Coach Kim Sang-sik has more quality personnel options. Notably, the group of overseas Vietnamese players are gradually asserting themselves in the V-League.
Midfielder Tran Thanh Trung, who returned from Bulgaria, has taken a starting position at Ninh Binh FC, alongside two seniors Nguyen Hoang Duc and Duc Chien. This player is highly appreciated for his tactical thinking and neat ball handling ability in European style. Meanwhile, Nguyen Vadim, a Vietnamese-Russian midfielder ofSHB Da Nang, has shown significant progress, but still needs more time to convince the coaching staff in the fierce competition.
Another new name is Zan Nguyen, a 1m91 tall Vietnamese-American center back who is playing for Ho Chi Minh City FC. Not only is he a solid defender, Zan also made his mark with a beautiful goal in the national First Division. If he completes the naturalization procedure, this player can become an important weapon, helping U23 Vietnam increase their aerial strength, which has been an inherent weakness of Vietnamese football for many years.
Meanwhile, the Indonesian media is paying special attention to a familiar name: Nguyen Dinh Bac. The Indonesian newspaper Bola called him a “powerful weapon” of the Vietnamese team at the 33rd SEA Games, when listing this 21-year-old striker in the list of 5 Southeast Asian stars worth watching in the tournament. Playing dynamically on both wings, Dinh Bac is a fast, technical player who knows how to create breakthroughs in tight spaces. He won the title of Best Player of the 2025 U23 Southeast Asian tournament and has played 12 times for the national team, scoring 2 goals.
SEA Games 33 could be the last tournament for the generation of Dinh Bac, Van Khang, Quoc Viet, Van Truong at the U23 level, and that is what makes their determination greater than ever. “This SEA Games is the last one for our generation. The whole team will fight for the third gold medal in history,” Dinh Bac affirmed.
Before the SEA Games, U23 Vietnam will have a series of important friendly matches against U23 Korea, U23 Uzbekistan and U23 China. These are all top opponents in the continent, helping the team test their tactical organization, improve their competitive spirit and especially their ability to adapt to high-intensity football.
In the group stage of the 33rd SEA Games, U23 Vietnam is in the same group with U23 Malaysia and U23 Laos. If they advance further, the team can meet U23 Thailand or U23 Indonesia again, their traditional rivals in the region. In the context of Indonesia being "hot-headed" after the defeat in the final of the U23 Southeast Asia and urgently reforming its force, and Thailand can call up more Thai players, the journey to defend the gold medal of U23 Vietnam is certainly not easy.
But with thorough preparation, a well-balanced squad and a scientific training strategy, coach Kim Sang-sik and his team have the basis to dream big. After all, tactical variations, along with Korean-style discipline, are creating a team capable of facing any challenge.
Source: https://baovanhoa.vn/the-thao/bien-hoa-de-chinh-phuc-sea-games-33-178171.html
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