U.18 Vietnam to Korea for friendly match, surprise hot seat for coach: Top-class factor

U.18 Vietnam has a new coach

In this training session, the Vietnam U.18 team has a total of 32 players called up, including many faces who participated in the 2025 U.17 Asian Cup finals such as goalkeeper Hoa Xuan Tin, defender Nguyen Hong Quang, Le Tan Dung, midfielder Dau Hong Phong, Nguyen Van Khanh, striker Hoang Trong Duy Khang, Nguyen Van Bach, Nguyen Thien Phu...

This is considered the core force for the U.18 Vietnam team to aim to improve international competition experience, while accumulating a foundation for further goals.

U.18 Việt Nam sang Hàn Quốc giao hữu, bất ngờ ghế nóng HLV: Nhân tố đẳng cấp- Ảnh 1. — U.18 Vietnam prepares to compete in Korea

However, this is not yet the team that gathers the best players of the U.18 age group of Vietnamese football, because many excellent players are not present this time due to injury or are busy playing for their home clubs in the V-League or national youth tournaments.

Leading the Vietnam U.18 team is coach Yutaka Ikeuchi (Japan), an experienced expert who signed a contract with the Vietnam Football Federation in February 2025 and will take on the role of technical supervisor of the Vietnam U.17 team at the 2025 AFC U.17 Championship.

Mr. Ikeuchi was born in 1961 in Aichi (Japan), played professionally for Fujita Club (Shonan Bellmare) and played for the Japanese national team from 1981 to 1985. After retiring, he switched to coaching, working for more than 20 years with the Japan Football Association (JFA) and holding many important positions such as head coach of the U.15, U.16, U.17 Japanese teams, JFA youth training director, lecturer of C, B, A and Pro courses.

Mr. Yutaka Ikeuchi holds a JFA "S" coaching license and is considered one of the most experienced youth football trainers, having contributed to the development of many generations of Japanese players.

U.18 Việt Nam sang Hàn Quốc giao hữu, bất ngờ ghế nóng HLV: Nhân tố đẳng cấp- Ảnh 2. — Mr. Yukata Ikeuchi used to be a technical advisor for U.17 Vietnam.

At the 2025 AFC U-17 Championship, Mr. Yukata Ikeuchi provided professional support to head coach Cristiano Roland, helping Vietnam U-17 draw with strong opponents such as Japan U-17 and Australia U-17.

Strong opponents await U.18 Vietnam

According to the plan, the Vietnam U.18 team will practice in Hanoi until September 19, before moving to Korea to participate in the Seoul Eou Cup 2025 international tournament, taking place from September 21 to September 28 in Seoul.

This year's tournament brings together 8 very high-quality youth teams including: U.18 Vietnam, Seoul FA (selected the best U.18 Seoul), K League U.18 All Star (selected U.18 K League), Gangneung Jungang High School - the reigning champion of the Korean High School Championship, Kanto University (Japan), U.18 Johor Darul Ta'zim (Malaysia), U.18 Buriram United (Thailand) and U.18 Zhejiang (China).

With a squad rich in potential, the Vietnam U.18 team promises to have a positive performance in the tournament, while also accumulating more international competition experience to serve important goals.

The U.18 Vietnam team will be nurtured to be promoted to U.19 Vietnam, aiming for the U.19 Southeast Asian tournament and the U.20 Asian qualifiers.