Young people 'lost' in the Vietnam team: Don't expect coach Kim to make an exception

A starting position in the Vietnam national team is still too much of a challenge for the U.22 Vietnam players, even though in just 1 or 2 years, these players will no longer be young.

Vietnam team has difficulty using young people

The current roster of the Vietnamese team has 4 players under the age of 23, including goalkeeper Trung Kien, center back Ly Duc, left back Van Khang and striker Quoc Viet.

Of which, only Trung Kien and Van Khang were on the initial call-up list. Ly Duc was called up to replace Thanh Binh, and Quoc Viet was the option to "patch" the place left by Cong Phuong.

Trung Kien (middle) has difficulty competing for the starting position.

PHOTO: VUONG ANH

All four of these players are unlikely to compete for a starting position. Standing in front of HAGL's young goalkeeper Trung Kien are two experienced seniors, Nguyen Filip and Dinh Trieu. While Nguyen Filip has spent nearly a decade in the Czech Republic championship and is regaining his form at the Hanoi Police Club (CAHN Club), Dinh Trieu is the best goalkeeper of the 2024 AFF Cup.

On the left wing, Van Khang has to compete with Cao Pendant Quang Vinh, a Vietnamese-American star who played for the French U.18 team and played for 8 years in Ligue 2 (for Sochaux and Quevilly).

In the friendly match with U.22 Vietnam on the evening of June 4, Quang Vinh was given a chance. The defender born in 1997 was given a lot of the ball to show off his attacking ability. Although he has not shown much, when Quang Vinh mainly holds the ball, coordinates with the sidelines and focuses on safe handling, the 28-year-old defender is still the number one candidate for the left-back position.

Similarly, Ly Duc did not play a single minute in the March training camp despite being promoted to the national team by coach Kim Sang-sik. Quoc Viet was on the preliminary list for the 2024 AFF Cup, but did not stay until the end. Both were "planned" to become pillars of the U.22 Vietnam team, however, the Vietnamese team is still too much of a challenge.

Mr. Kim's difficult problem

Coach Kim Sang-sik has made efforts to rejuvenate the Vietnamese team since taking office in May 2024. He emphasized the important role of the next generation, in the context that the current pillars may only reach their peak performance in 2-3 years.

Ly Duc joined the national team to gain experience

PHOTO: VUONG ANH

The Korean strategist is ready to open the door, with the case of Bui Vi Hao being an example (from being a reserve in the U.23 to taking the starting position in the national team).

However, unlike his predecessor Philippe Troussier, Mr. Kim has been selective in his rejuvenation, with a more reasonable dosage. Coach Troussier failed because he hastily placed his hopes on the young players when they were still too immature, and Mr. Kim does not want to repeat the path of his predecessor.

Having failed to rejuvenate Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors in the 2022-2023 period, coach Kim Sang-sik understands that he cannot let young players "force maturity". No matter how potential a young player has, if he is forced to play when he is not mature enough both mentally and physically, he can easily fall into a state of decline.

Mr. Kim only agrees to let young players play when they meet the requirements. There is no bias. Rejuvenation is just to create conditions for young players to join the national team, not to give them a starting position. That is something young players must earn. Based on this criterion, all 4 U.22 players of the Vietnamese national team are not ready.

Coach Kim Sang-sik makes no exceptions for young players

PHOTO: VUONG ANH

Vietnam U.22 faces many important goals this year, such as the Southeast Asian U.23 tournament, the Asian U.23 finals or the 33rd SEA Games. Arranging the U.22 team to practice with the Vietnam national team, or promoting promising faces to the national team is also Mr. Kim's way of "setting the teeth of the comb" so that the seniors can pass on their experience to the younger generation.

When a starting position in the Vietnam national team is still far away, the U.22 players must strive to prove their abilities in the last youth tournaments of their careers to create a springboard for a future position. The previous generations of 95 - 97 all took advantage of youth tournaments such as the U.20 World Cup and U.23 Asia to become pillars of the national team.

Coach Kim is still diligently "panning for sand", with the hope that one day, a new "golden" generation of Vietnamese football will appear.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/nguoi-tre-bo-vo-o-doi-tuyen-viet-nam-dung-mong-thay-kim-co-ngoai-le-185250604231750831.htm