Returning to number 1 in Southeast Asia, dreaming of the World Cup

In 2024, Vietnamese football aims for many important goals that play a role in creating a breakthrough in development. In particular, the Vietnamese national team holds a great responsibility when participating in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.

Nurturing the World Cup dream

The Vietnamese team began their 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign at the end of 2023, with 1 win and 1 draw. In the journey towards the next round, the series of matches in March is very important for coach Philippe Troussier and his students.

Vietnam team must pass the second qualifying round of the 2026 World Cup.

In this group, Indonesia is considered a direct competitor to the Vietnamese team. Therefore, the two matches against the archipelagic nation are matches that the Vietnamese team must win.

Indonesia is no longer an easy opponent to "bully" in the encounters with the Vietnamese team. The opponent has made progress, while the Vietnamese team is in a difficult period under coach Troussier. The loss to Indonesia at the 2023 Asian Cup is a warning sign of difficulties for the two matches next March.

That failure also put coach Troussier under a lot of pressure. Even in the event that the Vietnamese team cannot repay the debt to Indonesia in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, the French coach is at risk of losing his position.

Reclaim the throne of Southeast Asia

Although the Vietnamese team aims to go beyond the region, the AFF Cup is still an important tournament that cannot be ignored. This is still a playground to affirm the position of Vietnamese football in Southeast Asia. Under coach Park Hang Seo, the Vietnamese team won the tournament in 2018 but could not successfully defend the title in 2021. A year later, Que Ngoc Hai and his teammates lost to Thailand after 2 finals.

The Vietnamese team must regain the number 1 position in Southeast Asia.

Under coach Troussier, the Vietnamese team rebuilt its squad and playing style. This process did not go smoothly in the first year when the results were not as expected. The goal that the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) set for the team at the AFF Cup 2024 was lowered from participating in the final to winning a medal - meaning passing the group stage. However, if the Vietnamese team only stopped at the semi-finals, it would be difficult for the Vietnamese team to satisfy the fans.

In addition, the No. 1 position in Southeast Asia is not only reflected in the AFF Cup championship. After the AFF Cup 2023, the Vietnamese team is no longer the team with the highest position on the FIFA rankings in the region.

Compared to the achievements in the AFF Cup or the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, this ranking is not as important. However, the world ranking also partly reflects the position of the Vietnamese team in each period. Fans are of course not happy when the home team loses the No. 1 position in the region that has been maintained for the past 5 years.

Dream of 2024 Olympics

The 2024 AFC U23 Championship finals will take place in April this year. The Vietnam U23 team is in the same group with Uzbekistan U23, Kuwait U23 and Malaysia U23. Coach Troussier and his team have a high chance of advancing in this group.

U23 Vietnam has not received a target yet, but Coach Troussier once shared his ambition to bring this generation of players to the 2024 Olympics. This is a milestone that Vietnamese football has never achieved and will not be easy to achieve, especially when the continent's top teams also send strong teams to participate in the tournament.

The U23 Vietnam team that Mr. Troussier leads in 2023, as well as the reserve team led by coach Hoang Anh Tuan in the Southeast Asian tournament and ASIAD 19, are not rated as highly as the senior generation. However, in recent times, many factors have shown clear progress, which is worth looking forward to.

Players like Nguyen Dinh Bac, Vo Minh Trong, Khuat Van Khang, Nguyen Thai Son were trained early by Mr. Troussier in top tournaments at the national team level. That is the necessary preparation for them to have more courage when entering the final round of the 2024 AFC U23 Championship.

Van Hai

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