Vietnamese youth football has become a nightmare for Australia.

From the U.17, U.20 to U.23 levels, Vietnamese football teams have consistently defeated Australian youth teams over the past 10 years.

Vietnamese youth football team defeats Australia again.

The 2-1 victory against Australia U17 (on April 22nd) secured Vietnam U17's place in the final of the 2026 Southeast Asian U17 Championship. After a full decade, Vietnam U17 is once again competing for the regional championship title.

Coach Cristiano Roland's team controlled the game, defended effectively, counter-attacked well, and breached their opponents with well-executed plays. The comeback victory against the Australian U17 team also demonstrated the maturity in character and mental fortitude of the young Vietnamese players, as they overcame a strong opponent in a tightly planned game.

The U.17 team's victory also extended the streak of Vietnamese youth football bringing heartbreak to Australian youth football at various levels, from Southeast Asia to Asia.

Vietnam U.17 team achieves a 'golden' victory.

PHOTO: VFF

At the U.16/U.17 level, Vietnam defeated Australia in the group stage of the 2016 Asian Championship, with a spectacular 3-2 comeback victory to secure a place in the quarterfinals. Also in 2016, the Vietnam U.16 team faced the Australia U.16 team in the final of the Southeast Asian U.16 Championship. Coach Dinh The Nam's team drew 3-3 with their opponents after 120 minutes, then unfortunately lost on penalties.

At the U.19/U.20 level, Vietnam once convincingly defeated Australia 5-1 in the 2014 U.19 Asian Championship qualifiers, which took place in October 2013. A year later, the Vietnam U.19 team again beat Australia (1-0) in their opening match of the 2014 U.19 Southeast Asian Championship at My Dinh Stadium, thanks to a superb solo goal by Nguyen Cong Phuong.

In the group stage of the 2023 AFC U-20 Championship, Coach Hoang Anh Tuan's Vietnam U-20 team defeated Australia U-20 1-0 in their opening match, thanks to a long-range goal by Nguyen Quoc Viet.

At the U.23 level, Vietnam also beat Australia (1-0) in the second round of the 2018 U.23 Asian Championship group stage, creating a springboard to win a ticket to the quarterfinals, and then also wrote a fairy tale in Changzhou with the continental runner-up title.

There is still a big gap in the national team.

Thus, it's easy to see that Vietnamese youth football no longer fears the "giant" Australia, regardless of the level of competition. The maturation in stature, muscle mass, and physical fitness allows young Vietnamese players to compete on equal footing with opponents possessing similar European genes.

The accumulated victories of the past also create a boost of confidence, giving the young players a relaxed (even excited) mindset when facing the Australian youth team.

"The spirit was the key to victory for the Vietnam U.17 team," Coach Roland explained.

Vietnam U.17 needs more time to make history.

PHOTO: VFF

However, at the highest level (national team), Vietnam still cannot match Australia, being 72 places lower in the FIFA rankings (99th compared to 27th). In their two most recent encounters in the 2022 World Cup qualifiers, Vietnam lost 0-1 at home and 0-4 away. While the Australian team is a regular participant in the World Cup, the Vietnamese team has never reached this stage.

Therefore, success at the youth level is only one of the necessary conditions. The Vietnamese national team needs a stronger foundation from youth training, the national championship, sports science and nutrition, etc., to develop players more evenly, in order to get closer to Asian standards.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/bong-da-tre-viet-nam-tro-thanh-ac-mong-voi-uc-185260423123345998.htm