Vietnam U23 team faces a tough challenge.
Two of the four teams that reached the semi-finals of the men's football tournament at the 33rd SEA Games (U.23 Indonesia and U.23 Myanmar) were eliminated in the group stage. This proves that youth football in Southeast Asia is always unpredictable. Vietnam's U.23 opponent in the semi-finals is a prime example.
The U23 Philippines team hasn't reached the SEA Games semi-finals in the past two decades. While they've had brief periods of success at the senior national team level, such as 2010-2012 and 2018-2019, overall, the key to "The Azkals'" success lies in their squad of players of European descent.
Regarding the quality of youth training, Philippine football has long been among the top in the region. In the last three SEA Games, the Philippine U23 team even finished last or second-to-last. The poor national league (with only 11 participating teams) and weak youth football system do not allow the Philippines to dream, even at the Southeast Asian level.
Vietnam U23 (in red jerseys) previously defeated the Philippines in the semi-finals of the 2025 Southeast Asian U23 Championship.
PHOTO: DONG NGUYEN KHANG
However, the Philippine Football Federation has changed its strategy. While still relying on a core of players of Filipino descent, the Philippines is now targeting younger naturalized players, primarily aged 18-23, instead of the famous but past-peak players they previously focused on. The "sweet fruits" of this policy, though not yet seen in the national team, have already been borne in the U23 squad.
Coach Garrath McPherson has 13 players of European and American descent at his disposal, including five who are currently playing for the Philippine national team: Sandro Reyes, Dylan Dmuynck, Javier Mariona, Santiago Rublico, and Otu Banatao. Reyes and Rublico previously faced Vietnam in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.
Half of the Philippines U.23 squad have also played in numerous international tournaments, both large and small, and have developed their skills in European football (playing in lower leagues in Belgium and Germany) or American collegiate football.
The practice of "planting" young players into the national team is helping many youth football nations make remarkable progress. The Lao U23 team, with half of its players being national team members, only lost 1-2 to the Vietnamese U23 team in the group stage. The Philippines U23 team went even further, defeating both the Indonesian U23 team (1-0) and the Myanmar U23 team (2-0) to win Group C, much to the surprise of football fans.
Vietnam U23 needs to be vigilant.
PHOTO: DONG NGUYEN KHANG
Facing the U23 Vietnam team was no longer the naive and inexperienced U23 Philippines of the past, but a more mature version in terms of tactical thinking. Sandro Reyes and his teammates possessed both the typical Latin American agility and the physical strength and fighting spirit that overshadowed even the Dutch-born naturalized stars of the U23 Indonesia team.
The battle of muscles
While the Vietnam U23 team only had 3 days of rest, the Philippines U23 team had a week to recover and study their opponent. Identifying Vietnam U23 as a potential opponent in the semi-finals, McPherson and his assistants analyzed video footage and observed the team live to develop their tactics.
In particular, the 1-2 defeat against Vietnam U23 in the Southeast Asian semi-finals serves as a reference for the Philippines U23 team. The Vietnamese youth team's squad and playing style are not much different from five months ago, while the Philippines U23 team has changed significantly.
Therefore, the showdown at Rajamangala Stadium at 3:30 PM on December 15th promises to be a tough one for the Vietnam U23 team.
With only one month to train the Philippines U23 team, McPherson didn't define a style of play based on quick passing or fluid ball distribution, but instead built a "minimalist" strategy: tight zonal defense, quick counter-attacks with long balls or wing play. Similar to the Vietnam U23 team, the Philippines U23 team focused on direct attacks (getting the ball into the penalty area as quickly as possible), preferring physical confrontations and aerial balls.
The physical strength of the Philippines U23 team has stunned both Indonesia and Myanmar. At the same time, their tight, well-organized formation and stable mentality will make the Philippines U23 team even more formidable.
The Vietnam U23 team is preparing to face a strong opponent with the most similar playing style they've encountered in the past six months. There will be no more easy challenges like in the group stage; the defense must focus on neutralizing pressure, while the attack needs more diverse and adaptable coordination, avoiding over-reliance on Dinh Bac.
Facing strong opponents forces the Vietnam U23 team to upgrade themselves. That is probably what coach Kim Sang-sik is most looking forward to.
Source: https://thanhnien.vn/u23-viet-nam-se-thang-dep-u23-philippines-danh-bai-dan-sao-au-my-185251213170109746.htm
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