Laos U22 coach confident of creating surprise against Vietnam at SEA Games 33

(Dan Tri) - Before the opening match of Group B of SEA Games 33 against U22 Vietnam, Coach Ha Hyeok Jun affirmed that U22 Laos had prepared carefully, was ready to create surprises and hoped to pass the group stage.

"We are well aware of the importance of the SEA Games and have prepared thoroughly for the tournament. I am confident that the team can create surprises, and everything within our capabilities is ready. Tomorrow, I just hope the players will perform their best, but the result is unpredictable," coach Ha Hyeok Jun of Laos U22 opened a press conference at Rajamangala Stadium, Bangkok, Thailand on the afternoon of December 2.

Coach Ha Hyeok Jun and Coach Kim Sang Sik attended the press conference before the match (Photo: Khoa Nguyen).

At the 33rd SEA Games, the U22 Laos team is in the same group with Vietnam and U22 Malaysia in Group B. At 4pm on December 3, U22 Laos will compete with U22 Vietnam and 4 days later will compete with U22 Malaysia. According to the regulations of the 33rd SEA Games, only the top team is guaranteed to enter the semi-finals.

In Group B, U22 Laos is not rated as highly as U22 Vietnam or U22 Malaysia in finding a ticket to the semi-finals, however, coach Ha Hyeok Jun said that does not mean he and his students will give up hope of passing the group stage.

“To qualify for the group stage, winning one game and drawing one game would be enough, although reaching the semi-finals is never easy. We have two players currently playing in Thailand, they are of high quality and can create a positive effect for the team to aim for victory,” he said.

Coach Ha Hyeok Jun shakes hands with coach Kim Sang Sik (Photo: Khoa Nguyen).

Talking about facing his compatriot Kim Sang Sik, coach Ha Hyeok Jun said: “We have met four times and coach Kim Sang Sik has raised our level of expertise to a new level. However, in the last match (Vietnam beat Laos 2-0 in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers on November 19), we lacked a bit of luck. There are also some technical details that need to be improved, and we will try to adjust for tomorrow's match.”

Coach Ha Hyeok Jun also sent a message to the fans of the land of a million elephants: “Laos is a country with a small population in Southeast Asia, but their love for football is no less than anywhere else. The country has just celebrated 50 years of independence and this will be an opportunity for us to bring back beautiful memories for the Lao people.”

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-thao/hlv-u22-lao-tu-tin-tao-bat-ngo-truoc-viet-nam-o-sea-games-33-20251202141901854.htm