And my heart is filled with hope for the future.

The Vietnamese national team has a very solid foundation.

As we predicted, the Vietnamese players' performance at the 2024 AFF Cup will be significantly better than in the friendly matches during the FIFA Days in September and October 2024. In those friendly matches, the V-League had only just begun, and the players were barely "warmed up." Furthermore, striker Nguyen Xuan Son suffered an injury in the early stages of the 2024-2025 season, missing several of the first rounds of the V-League.

The Vietnamese national team's success at the AFF Cup began with the V-League.

However, things took a completely different turn towards the end of November 2024. The players had played more matches, and the V-League gradually entered a more intense competitive phase. As a result, the players' form improved. For Nguyen Xuan Son, the V-League matches just before the Vietnamese national team's training camp for the AFF Cup (late November) were the rounds where the striker was at his peak form and physical condition, before he carried that form with him to the national team.

The 2024 AFF Cup was also a tournament where central defender Thanh Chung played better than ever. This was thanks to the period of time he had stabilized his mental state and form in domestic competitions not long before.

Also at the 2024 AFF Cup, coach Kim Sang-sik introduced two completely new faces: central midfielder Doan Ngoc Tan and left-back Nguyen Van Vi. Before the South Korean coach's time, very few fans knew these two players, except for fans in Thanh Hoa (where Doan Ngoc Tan plays) and Nam Dinh (where Nguyen Van Vi plays).

All Vietnamese players participating in the AFF Cup 2024 are currently playing in the domestic league.

Under coach Kim Sang-sik, striker Bui Vi Hao played better than ever. Perhaps after his time with the Vietnam U23 team under coach Hoang Anh Tuan at the 2024 U23 Asian Championship, the 2024 AFF Cup is the tournament that will help Bui Vi Hao reach a new level.

This shows that the potential of the V-League in particular, as well as the domestic league system in general, remains very large. Coaches can still discover "raw gems" from the domestic league. These are the kinds of players whose potential is difficult for ordinary people to see. However, coaches have a professional eye and the ability to spot talent, so they know where to place these players to maximize their hidden potential.

Conversely, the success of the Vietnamese national team at the AFF Cup will also be a source of encouragement for the V-League and the domestic league system, aiming for further development of the domestic football scene. Two players currently playing in the First Division, Nguyen Hoang Duc and Dinh Thanh Binh, also made their mark at the AFF Cup. Hoang Duc, in particular, played exceptionally well. The team he plays for is currently in the top position in the First Division.

The success of Vietnamese football at the Southeast Asian Championship is proof that the quality of the domestic league is now sufficient to produce bright talents, providing the national team with the ability to compete for the highest achievements with other football nations in the region.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/tu-ngoi-vo-dich-aff-cup-nhin-ve-v-league-ma-long-phoi-phoi-day-tuong-lai-185250108233056149.htm