Vietnam National Team and the return of Xuan Son

Striker Nguyen Xuan Son has returned and is ready to play for the Vietnam national team. However, coach Kim Sang-sik will need more training sessions to evaluate and decide on using this player.

On November 11, Nguyen Xuan Son joined the training session with the Vietnamese team, marking his return after nearly a year away from the field due to injury.

Speaking to the press, Xuan Son said: “Today is a very special day for me. Returning to the national team after 11 months makes me happy and proud. My family has always been my biggest spiritual support, helping me overcome the difficult times.

I told Coach Kim and the whole team thank you for believing in me and waiting for me. Wearing the national team jersey and contributing to the Fatherland is always a great honor. I have fully recovered and am physically fit enough to play the full 90 minutes. For nearly a year, I have worked tirelessly to regain my best form.

The final decision depends on the Head Coach. If I have the chance to play, I will enjoy every moment on the field, try to score or assist, but the most important thing is that the Vietnam team wins."

Xuan Son is expected to regain his form. Photo: VFF.

Xuan Son is ready and shows great determination. He was injured in the final match of the Southeast Asian Championship between Vietnam and Thailand in January 2025. After nearly a year away from the field to treat the injury, Xuan Son has officially returned.

In fact, the Vietnamese team has been struggling in the absence of this key striker in recent times. Our attack has not met expectations. The Vietnamese team's 0-4 loss to Thailand and Malaysia in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers has left many scars.

During the Vietnam national team’s training session in October, coach Kim Sang-sik called up new players but still could not make up for the gap in the attack. That is why Xuan Son’s name is mentioned a lot after each match in which the Vietnam national team’s attack did not bring efficiency.

Xuan Son's return is considered good news. However, is coach Kim Sang-sik ready to use this player at this time? This will be answered after training sessions that the coaching staff needs to carefully calculate.

It should be remembered that Xuan Son has just returned to the training ground and has not played any matches for Nam Dinh in any tournaments. Therefore, it is difficult to evaluate Son's performance even though he admitted that he has reached 100% fitness.

The Vietnamese team will face Laos in the upcoming match, this is an opponent without a network, with the lineup without Xuan Son, coach Kim Sang-sik can still manage with the current players. Therefore, Xuan Son can still sit on the bench. If Son is used, it can be in the last minutes of the match. This is a reasonable choice for Xuan Son to get back in the rhythm. The match with Laos may just be Son's first warm-up steps.

Calling Son up to the Vietnam national team this time may be part of Kim Sang-sik's long-term plan. This may just be a training session for Son to regain his ball feel and get used to the national team environment. He may not be used immediately in the match against Laos. A player who has just returned from a serious, prolonged injury needs to be considered and evaluated more carefully by the professional team.

This return may just be a stepping stone, preparing for the decisive match against Malaysia next March. After the training session in November, Xuan Son will be evaluated in detail before being selected as an official, important factor as before.

Source: https://cand.com.vn/the-thao/doi-tuyen-viet-nam-va-su-tro-lai-cua-xuan-son-i787768/