Mr. Kim called many U.23 Vietnam players to the Vietnam national team, the reason is…

The Vietnam national team will gather again from October 4, with the participation of many young U.23 Vietnam stars expected to prepare for the two matches against Nepal in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers.

Young midfielder Hieu Minh helps U.23 Vietnam keep a clean sheet after 3 matches of the 2026 U.23 Asia qualifiers

Photo: Minh Tu

Injury storm in Vietnam national team

It is expected that on October 4, the Vietnamese team will gather again in Ho Chi Minh City, preparing for two matches against Nepal in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers, with the matches at Binh Duong Stadium on October 9 and Thong Nhat Stadium on October 14.

Playing two official matches at home against a team of equal strength like Nepal will be an important opportunity for coach Kim Sang-sik to review his squad and make adjustments to best prepare for the goal of defeating Malaysia at home in March 2026.

This will also be an opportunity for many young faces with great potential of the U.23 Vietnam team to be called up to the Vietnam national team. The reason comes from the storm of injuries that will make Mr. Kim absent a series of heroes of the AFF Cup 2024.

Bui Hoang Viet Anh's injury will force Mr. Kim to strengthen the defense of the Vietnamese team.

Photo: Minh Tu

Unfortunately, at this point, the list of "wounded soldiers" of the Vietnamese team is quite long, with names that were the main players at the AFF Cup 2024 such as Vi Hao, Tan Tai, Van Thanh, Thanh Binh, Xuan Son... in the process of recovering after surgery and new injuries of Viet Anh, Quang Hai, Ngoc Tan...

Opportunity for young stars of U.23 Vietnam

Having nearly a dozen "hardcore" names will cause coach Kim Sang-sik many difficulties, but also open up opportunities for him to call up young U.23 Vietnam stars to the first team, especially when Nepal is an opponent that is 62 places below us on the FIFA rankings (176 compared to 114 of Vietnam).

In addition to Van Khang, Dinh Bac, Thai Son, Van Truong, Trung Kien, Ly Duc... who have regularly "eaten the national team's meal", the Korean coach can call Hieu Minh, Nhat Minh to replace Viet Anh, Thanh Binh or Xuan Bac to supplement the midfield, or Thanh Nhan, Le Viktor, Ngoc My... on the attack line.

Will Mr. Kim Sang-sik be generous in allowing many young U.23 Vietnam stars to try their hand at the Vietnam national team?

Photo: Ngoc Linh

The above mentioned U.23 Vietnam players all have in common the fact that they have regular playing time, continuously with high performance at the club level in the V-League, which can provide suggestions to fill the gap left by injured seniors.

Even if we look at Mr. Kim's decisive habit, it is not impossible that the strategist born in 1976 will summon many champions of the 2025 Southeast Asian U.23 tournament, in addition to the framework of Nguyen Filip, Duy Manh, Thanh Chung, Xuan Manh, Tien Anh, Hoang Duc, Quang Vinh, Tien Linh, Tuan Hai...

"Transplanting" young U.23 Vietnam players to the Vietnam national team will help them quickly mature when practicing with their seniors.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/ong-kim-goi-nhieu-cau-thu-u23-viet-nam-len-doi-tuyen-viet-nam-ly-do-la-185250923154416023.htm