Focus on new campaign

Create a solid framework

The 2026 AFC U23 Championship qualifiers will feature 44 teams, divided into 11 groups (4 teams each) competing in a round-robin format at a central location from September 1 to 9. After the qualifiers, the top 11 teams in each group and the four best runners-up will qualify for the finals next year with host Saudi Arabia.

Vietnam U23 has a big advantage when playing at home against Bangladesh U23, Yemen U23 and Singapore U23. Coach Kim Sang-sik and his team will open the tournament with a match against Bangladesh U23 on September 3, then face Singapore U23 (September 6) and Yemen U23 (September 9).

According to experts, U23 Vietnam will likely have to compete for the top spot and a direct ticket to the final round with U23 Yemen when the two teams meet in the final match. In the 2024 AFC U23 Championship qualifiers held at Viet Tri Stadium in 2023, U23 Vietnam defeated Yemen 1-0, then won a ticket to the final round with the top spot in the group.

It is very likely that the squad participating in the 2026 AFC U23 Championship qualifiers of U23 Vietnam will be the same squad that just won the Southeast Asian U23 Championship. In addition to familiar names such as Trung Kien, Ly Duc, Van Truong, Van Khang, Viktor Le, Hieu Minh, Dinh Bac, Cong Phuong, Quoc Viet, etc., U23 Vietnam has added new faces that have been given opportunities by coach Kim Sang-sik.

Of the 24 players called up, the most notable is the appearance of Tran Thanh Trung - a player who has just entered the top 3 best young players in Bulgaria in the 2024/25 season. The combination of top-level competition experience and the freshness of young players is considered the key to creating momentum for the team. But the biggest challenge comes from maintaining stable performance. Youth football is inherently full of surprises and lacks stability. Therefore, in this "training" period, the players will have to really focus and demonstrate their professional abilities in training and competition.

Lessons from previous tournaments show that physical weakness is still a major obstacle for young Vietnamese players. Therefore, in this training session, the coaching staff has developed a special curriculum, combining nutritional science , recovery and endurance-enhancing exercises.

Foreign fitness experts are also ready to assist, in order to optimize the team's high-intensity endurance. Along with fitness, Coach Kim Sang-sik and his colleagues will focus on training diverse attacking strategies, instead of relying too much on wing attacks like in the recent Southeast Asian tournament. The coaching staff will encourage players to develop the ability to control the ball in the midfield, coordinate small and rotate quickly to adapt to many different opponents.

Best prepared

Gathering at the same time as the national team will be a great advantage for U23 Vietnam in the preparation process. The most noticeable point when the U23 team and the national team gather at the same time is the direct connection between the two groups of players. Gathering at the same time, even at the same location, creates conditions for the coaching staff to observe and evaluate their abilities directly and accurately.

When two teams gather at the same time, the expert system - from physical fitness, medical , psychology to data analysis - can all serve simultaneously, creating close coordination. This helps save resources, but still ensures optimal quality. The internal training sessions and matches between the U23 and the national team are not only experimental but also very valuable real-life tests. The U23 players are able to compete with experienced seniors, thereby learning to mature, creating better preparation for the upcoming battle.

In the history of participating in the U23 Asian qualifiers, U23 Vietnam has participated in the finals 5 times in a row from 2016 to 2024, the most notable of which is the achievement of winning the runner-up position in Changzhou (China) in 2018. From this achievement, every time U23 Vietnam participates in the continental playground, it receives great attention from fans.

The current generation of players, although not yet famous, are expected to continue that inspirational journey. The road ahead is certainly full of obstacles, but careful preparation, clear direction and a thirsty spirit will be the luggage for U23 Vietnam to confidently enter the 2026 AFC U23 Championship qualifiers.

With home advantage and the motivation from the Southeast Asian championship, the goal of U23 Vietnam is a ticket to the final round. Coach Kim Sang-sik and his team also understand that a ticket to the largest youth football tournament in the continent is not only a professional goal, but also an affirmation of the position of Vietnamese football in the region and the continent.

Source: https://baovanhoa.vn/the-thao/tap-trung-cho-chien-dich-moi-164221.html