Let U.17 Vietnam give wings to players to fly high

Potential revealed in U.17 Vietnam

"U.17 Vietnam has proven its potential through its performance on the field and the results on the scoreboard," coach Cristiano Roland told Thanh Nien Newspaper on April 17. The U.17 World Cup dream for U.17 Vietnam has ended, but in the perspective of the head coach, when one door closes, another door will open before the eyes of the young players. The Brazilian coach is sparing in praising his students, because he believes that at the age of 17, any assessment of a player is too early. Any achievement or failure at this age is just a passing cloud in the sky, a milestone, but does not determine the future.

"When I was young, I met many players who were better than me. They could be my opponents or teammates. They were full of potential, but then many of them stopped. As for me, I still pursue a career as a player because I have a passion. Therefore, evaluating a player's future at this time is not appropriate," Coach Roland shared frankly.

The U.17 team has a good future.

According to the coach of the Hanoi U.17 team, desire is one of the factors that distinguishes stars from ordinary players. He saw ambition in his students' eyes, when the players wanted to try to overcome their limits. "Tactics are also important, but only when the players are motivated to fight, the head coach can create change," Mr. Roland summarized the secret to helping the U.17 Vietnam team transform. The U.17 Vietnam team went from drawing with Cambodia, losing to Indonesia to becoming a team that drew with U.17 Japan, Australia and won against Uzbekistan, Oman, thanks to the players never being complacent with themselves.

U.17 Vietnam needs to be invested appropriately

PHOTO: DOAN NHAT

"My students have a promise, that is to practice and compete together, to fight hard towards the future. I believe that one day they will mature. The U.17 Vietnam team will become real men, with a place in the Vietnam national team," Coach Roland confided.

YOUTH FOOTBALL NEEDS ATTENTION

However, coach Roland believes that for Vietnamese youth football to take off, the players' efforts are not enough. He cited examples of reasons why Vietnamese football has not developed as expected, such as poor facilities and patchy pitches. He affirmed that training and competition conditions for young players need to be better.

"We trained on bad pitches, but in Saudi Arabia, the team played on different types of pitches. U.17 Vietnam only needed 1 month of training to beat U.17 Uzbekistan and U.17 Japan. After that, after another month of training, we drew with U.17 Japan in the rematch. In terms of training conditions and nutrition, it is clear that U.17 Japan and U.17 Australia enjoyed much better conditions than us. But U.17 Vietnam still drew with them. Young Vietnamese players are not inferior to representatives of developed football backgrounds," coach Roland told Thanh Nien reporters.

Coach Roland is very passionate about Vietnamese football.

Thanks to the 2025 U.17 Asian Championship, gems like Le Huy Viet Anh, Tran Gia Bao, Chu Ngoc Nguyen Luc, Hoang Trong Duy Khang... have shone. Mr. Roland affirmed that U.17 Vietnam has shown its value. If invested in the right direction, this will be a generation of players worth watching. However, that is also the word "if" that has haunted many generations. 9 years ago, U.16 Vietnam reached the quarter-finals of the 2016 U.16 Asian Championship, with a squad of many potential players led by coach Dinh The Nam. But until now, less than 5 players are still playing at the V-League level. Although they are 25 years old, the generation born in 2000 should be in the best stage of their careers.

"The difference lies in the competition environment, the quality of facilities and many other factors. I always believe that my students will take off, but Vietnamese football needs to provide players with a runway to depart. This is the responsibility of the sports industry, the Vietnam Football Federation, businesses, clubs and the fans themselves. Everyone needs to join hands. This is not a matter of one person alone. I hope that Vietnamese football will be truly cared for, more tournaments will be organized, so that one day in the not too distant future, the World Cup will no longer be out of reach for Vietnamese football," concluded Mr. Roland.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/de-u17-viet-nam-chap-canh-cho-cau-thu-bay-cao-18525041721133449.htm