Coach of U.23 Vietnam: Sprint for SEA Games through tournament in China

On the afternoon of November 11, acting head coach of U.23 Vietnam - Mr. Dinh Hong Vinh attended a press conference before the international football tournament CFA Team China - Panda Cup 2025 taking place in Chengdu, Sichuan province (China).

At the beginning of the press conference, coach Dinh Hong Vinh, on behalf of the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) and the Vietnam U.23 team, thanked the Chinese Football Association (CFA) for their thoughtful and respectful reception of the entire team right after arriving in China to participate in the tournament.

Useful tournament for U.23 Vietnam

Evaluating the professional quality of the Panda Cup 2025, Coach Dinh Hong Vinh affirmed that this is a highly competitive international tournament, gathering the continent's top youth teams. Besides U.23 Vietnam and host China, the two guest teams Uzbekistan and South Korea are also familiar opponents as they participated with U.23 Vietnam in the international friendly tournament organized by CFA in March 2025.

"In that tournament, U.23 Vietnam drew 1-1 with South Korea, 0-0 with Uzbekistan and 1-1 with China. Those matches really helped our young players mature a lot, contributing to creating a foundation for U.23 Vietnam to win the 2025 Southeast Asian U.23 Championship, and also win all the qualifiers for the 2026 Asian U.23 Championship," Coach Dinh Hong Vinh shared.

Press conference ahead of the 2025 Panda Cup in China

PHOTO: VFF

Coach Dinh Hong Vinh also expressed his hope that continuing to face strong opponents at the CFA Team China - Panda Cup 2025 will provide an important stepping stone to help the Vietnam U.23 team consolidate its strength and perfect its playing style, before entering the two upcoming big goals: SEA Games 33 and the 2026 U.23 Asian Finals.

In addition, Coach Dinh Hong Vinh also frankly acknowledged the difficulties in preparing for this tournament when many players had to compete in the V-League 2025-2026 so they could not gather early. "It was not until this afternoon (November 11) that we had full strength when 6 players had just completed their playing obligations for their home club. However, the team has been preparing throughout many training sessions since the end of 2024, so this is not a big obstacle. The whole team will try their best to compete well, achieve the highest professional efficiency, thereby creating a sprint for the 33rd SEA Games", said Coach Dinh Hong Vinh.

U.23 Vietnam match schedule at Panda Cup 2025

PHOTO: VFF

According to the plan, this afternoon (November 11), the U.23 Vietnam team will start their first training session in Sichuan. Before that, right after settling in their accommodation, the coaching staff only organized muscle relaxation exercises in the hotel grounds to help the players recover after the long journey.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/hlv-u23-viet-nam-nuoc-rut-cho-sea-games-thong-qua-giai-dau-o-trung-quoc-185251111143240226.htm