Vietnam team in the 0-4 loss to Malaysia - Photo: ANH KHOA
There is a feeling that Vietnamese football has "lost its way" in choosing the goal of building a national team that can reach the continental level or prioritizing achievements in youth tournaments.
Struggling with goals
The 0-4 defeat to the Malaysian naturalized stars in the final qualifying round of the 2027 Asian Cup showed many problems that Vietnamese football needs to change. But everything is still calm.
After the above failure, the Vietnamese team should have taken advantage of the FIFA Days to organize international friendly matches to build and find a better squad for the rematch with Malaysia next year.
But the Vietnamese team only gathered again during the FIFA Days in October to prepare for two matches against Nepal in the final qualifying round of the 2027 Asian Cup. In September, coach Kim Sang Sik focused on leading the Vietnamese U22 team to compete in the qualifying round of Group C at the 2026 Asian U23 Championship taking place in Viet Tri ( Phu Tho ).
In fact, this is the plan that the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) and Coach Kim Sang Sik agreed upon at the beginning of the year to create a consistent roadmap and effectively carry out tasks.
That is also the reason why VFF refused the Philippines' invitation to send Vietnam to participate in the International Friendly Tournament on the occasion of FIFA Days in September with South Africa, Indonesia and Singapore. After the heavy loss to Malaysia, the original plan should have been changed to improve the team's strength.
Indeed, looking back at the recent sad defeat, although the host Malaysia was stronger thanks to a squad of high-class naturalized players, it is clear that the Vietnamese team was not well prepared for this important match.
Malaysia has two friendly matches with Cape Verde - the team ranked 72nd in the world - to review the squad, creating conditions to connect the playing style with naturalized players.
Thailand, Singapore and Cambodia also had an international friendly match before entering the tournament.
The Vietnamese team only played internal practice matches with the U22 team before going to Malaysia.
In the match, hoping to surprise Malaysia, Mr. Kim arranged the starting lineup without any real striker. Chau Ngoc Quang was arranged to play as a false striker instead of Tien Linh, but did not create any pressure on the Malaysian defense.
Thanh Chung and Bui Tien Dung left the field due to injuries, Vietnam's defense was immediately "pierced". If there had been an international friendly match in June, Vietnam probably would not have lost to Malaysia so easily.
Prioritize regional performance?
Recently, assistant Dinh Hong Vinh was chosen by coach Kim Sang Sik to be the interim head coach to lead the Vietnam U22 team. But when the Vietnam U22 team officially competes, it is understandable that Mr. Kim will directly lead the team.
In particular, the 2026 AFC U23 Championship qualifiers are considered an important preparation stage for Vietnam U22 towards the goal of reaching the final of the 33rd SEA Games at the end of the year.
But the decision to "leave" the Vietnamese team out of the FIFA Days in September and focus on the U22 Vietnam team shows the vicious cycle of Vietnamese football.
Qualifying for the 2026 AFC U23 Championship at home is not a difficult goal for Vietnamese football when the opponents in the same group are not too strong.
Prioritizing the U22 team more or less shows that the long-term strategy is to invest in the successor force, but the main thing is still to help U22 Vietnam prepare for achieving results at the 33rd SEA Games.
Meanwhile, Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia have gradually turned their attention to the continent and are no longer interested in achieving regional results. Not gathering in September has caused the Vietnamese team to miss the opportunity to improve its squad. Meanwhile, Thailand and the Philippines are hosting two major tournaments with quality guests.
Vietnam won the ASEAN Cup 2024 when its opponents did not bring their strongest squads. At the 33rd SEA Games, Vietnam also had a chance to compete for the gold medal when host Thailand did not bring its strongest squad because it did not stop the domestic tournament.
But if we are only satisfied with conquering regional playgrounds like the ASEAN Cup or SEA Games, Vietnamese football will not be able to keep up with the increasingly strong investment of its opponents to reach the continental level.
Explaining why there were no international friendly matches during the two FIFA Days in June and September, a member of the Vietnamese team said: "The V-League at the end of the season has too many matches, so players need time to adjust their physical condition, so the Vietnamese team did not play any international friendly matches in June. In September, due to the qualifying round of the 2026 AFC U23 Championship, coach Kim Sang Sik wants to focus on the Vietnamese U22 team."
Source: https://tuoitre.vn/bong-da-viet-nam-dang-lac-loi-20250613231616112.htm
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