HAGL says no to overseas Vietnamese players, reserving spots for young stars

HAGL continues to prioritize the playing of rising stars, ignoring overseas Vietnamese players to contribute to the national youth teams, despite the possibility of affecting their performance in the V-League.

HAGL prioritizes developing young players

One of the key changes of the 2025-2026 V-League is that clubs are allowed to register 4 foreign players (using 3 foreign players on the field at the same time) and 2 overseas Vietnamese players (currently registering 3, using 3). This means that good "headhunting" teams can use 5 "Westerners" on the field at the same time. Looking at the V-League, it can be seen that this is a huge advantage when the performance of the teams is always closely linked to the quality of foreign players. However, HAGL will continue to stand outside this trend, when coach Le Quang Trai affirmed that the mountain town team will not use 2 overseas Vietnamese players. Their reason is very clear: giving priority to giving playing time to young talents trained at Ham Rong.

HAGL will continue to say no to overseas Vietnamese players in V-League 2025-2026

Photo: Minh Tran

Since Mr. Doan Nguyen Duc launched the HAGL JMG Football Academy in 2007, the team has gradually abandoned the habit of spending money on buying stars, shifting to using "homegrown" players. The 2015 season marked a milestone when Mr. Duc decided to drastically rejuvenate, bringing the entire first class of the HAGL JMG Academy to play for the first team. That decision may have been a bit hasty, because if the pillars stayed to guide, it would help Cong Phuong, Xuan Truong, Tuan Anh... mature even better. But Mr. Doan Nguyen Duc determined to prioritize creating practical opportunities on the field for young talents to develop and serve the national teams. Therefore, HAGL had its ups and downs, but the Vietnamese national team and U.23 Vietnam benefited a lot.

A BIG CHALLENGE FOR HAGL

After 10 years, HAGL will face a new milestone when preparing to say goodbye to 4 players Minh Vuong, Ngoc Quang, Bao Toan, Quang Nho. The near absence of HAGL JMG players will open a new chapter when the mountain town team uses gifted players and Nutifood. Looking at their current squad, except for Trung Kien and Ly Duc, there are only a few faces like Van Son (1996), Thanh Son (1997), Marciel (1995) as an experienced framework to rely on. HAGL saying no to overseas Vietnamese players means they have to trade off their achievements by using a squad of players born after 2000, most of whom were born after 2003, still qualified to compete in SEA Games 33.

Coach Le Quang Trai said: "Next season, HAGL has decided to use only 3 foreign players to create conditions for young players and not prioritize overseas Vietnamese players. HAGL's early relegation will help the coaching staff have time to observe and test to calculate the force for next season. In fact, we will be under a lot of pressure because V-League 2025-2026 will be very stressful.

At this time, the club has contacted to register enough 4 foreign players for next season. We also have a few candidates, but when they will come to Vietnam is not yet determined specifically. HAGL will not buy outsiders but prioritize players from Ham Rong. The pressure is very big when the opponents all strengthen their forces strongly. The work of the coaching staff will be heavier, but the whole team will try together to become a suitable place for self-trained players to contribute to the Vietnamese teams."

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/hagl-noi-khong-voi-cau-thu-viet-kieu-danh-suat-cho-sao-tre-185250618221541315.htm