Vietnam U23 players assembled overnight.

On the night of April 6th, Nguyen Thai Son and Vo Nguyen Hoang arrived in Hanoi and joined the Vietnam U23 team. They played in the match between Thanh Hoa FC and Hai Phong FC at Lach Tray Stadium. Thai Son started and played for over 80 minutes, while Nguyen Hoang came on at the beginning of the second half.

The two players from Thanh Hoa FC traveled from Hai Phong and it took them more than two hours to reach the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF). The players were somewhat dejected as their club had gone five consecutive matches without a win.

The Vietnam U23 team has begun training in preparation for the 2024 AFC U23 Asian Championship.

Thus, the Vietnam U23 team now has a full squad and officially began training on the afternoon of April 6th. Coach Hoang Anh Tuan and his team will train for two days at the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) Youth Football Training Center before departing for Qatar on April 8th. The Vietnam U23 team will play one more friendly match against Jordan U23 before finalizing the squad for the tournament.

The Vietnam U23 squad has seen a few minor changes ahead of this crucial training camp. Striker Nguyen Van Tung was called up at the last minute after Nguyen Thanh Nhan suffered a shoulder injury. The PVF-CAND striker did not recover in time and will miss the opportunity to participate in the 2024 U23 Asian Championship.

Surprisingly, Vo Minh Trong still played for Binh Duong FC in the V.League 2023/2024 season. Previously, he had been announced to be absent from the Vietnam U23 team due to injury.

In the 2024 AFC U23 Asian Championship finals, Vietnam U23 is in Group D along with Kuwait, Malaysia, and Uzbekistan. The two matches against Malaysia and Kuwait will be crucial for Coach Hoang Anh Tuan's team. Vietnam U23 will play their opening match against Kuwait, followed by two more matches against Malaysia and Uzbekistan. Vietnam U23's goal is to advance from the group stage.

Besides competing for rankings, this year's AFC U23 Championship also serves as a tournament to determine Asia's representatives for the 2024 Paris Olympics. Specifically, the top three U23 teams will qualify for the 2024 Paris Olympics. The fourth-placed team (who loses in the third-place match) will participate in a play-off against a representative from Africa to compete for a spot in France for the Olympic Games.

Mai Phuong

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