U.23 Vietnam had an impressive start in China, when will they play U.23 Uzbekistan?

Commendable debut of U.23 Vietnam

On the evening of November 12, in the opening match of the CFA Team China Panda Cup 2025 international friendly tournament in Chengdu (Sichuan province, China), coach Dinh Hong Vinh left the U.23 Vietnam players who had just worked hard in the V-League, Dinh Bac, Le Viktor and Quang Kiet, in the stands. It was a brave decision because Dinh Bac is the mainstay of the attack, if not the only striker of U.23 Vietnam since Vi Hao was injured. While Le Viktor's mobility always brings expectations of a breakthrough on the wing, even in the role of a withdrawn striker; Quang Kiet is simply the ideal option against tall opponents like Uzbekistan, Korea, China... and further into the U.23 Asian Cup. However, the performance in the 2 halves proved that Mr. Vinh's determination was correct.

U.23 Việt Nam khởi đầu ấn tượng tại Trung Quốc, đấu U.23 Uzebekistan ngày nào?- Ảnh 1. — U.23 Vietnam (right) had a victory on the opening day against host U.23 China

In the first 40 minutes, the U.23 Vietnam team's attack with the trio of Quoc Viet as the striker and Thanh Nhan and Cong Phuong on the two wings played poorly, lost in the middle of the tall and numerically superior defense of U.23 China. The connection in the midfield was also not good, causing us to lose the game to the opponent. Everything only got better in the period

The last 5 minutes when U.23 Vietnam gradually got into the rhythm of the match. As the game was getting better, Coach Dinh Hong Vinh decided to rotate 7 positions in 3 substitutions, showing the goal of all positions having the opportunity to enter the field to reach the state of competition. This was the opposite of U.23 China when they did not dare to make substitutions, causing them to gradually lose strength towards the end of the match, while the uniformity helped U.23 Vietnam not encounter too many stumbles.

The pressure and superiority in ball control and finishing in the second half helped U.23 Vietnam win 1-0, thanks to Minh Phuc's goal in the 84th minute. That is the way head coach Kim Sang-sik's team still likes to do: suffocate the opponent's play and finish them off in the second half. Of course, we also need to be alert because U.23 China is facing difficulties in terms of personnel, missing a series of stars due to injury and overload (only 8 reserve players were registered). However, playing well and winning with only 1 day of hurried preparation, on a completely new field and climate is a remarkable effort of U.23 Vietnam. The way the young players calmly resolved the pressure of U.23 China in the first half is also commendable.

Striker Bui Vi Hao entered the field in the 74th minute, marking a spectacular return after ankle surgery and ligaments just 7 months ago. The striker of Becamex TP.HCM Club even put good pressure on the Chinese U.23 defense, creating a difference compared to Quoc Viet in terms of the striker's ability to press.

Next match, U.23 Vietnam will meet U.23 Uzbekistan on November 15.