U22 Vietnam and the goal of winning the 33rd SEA Games gold medal

The opponents of the U22 Vietnam team in the group stage of SEA Games 33 have been determined. According to the draw results, coach Kim Sang-sik and his team did not fall into the group of 4 teams, but having to face U22 Malaysia - a highly rated opponent in the region, right from the group stage will certainly be a significant challenge.

The U22 Vietnam players are about to enter a peak training session to prepare for the 33rd SEA Games.

Similar to U22 Indonesia, Malaysian football is promoting the strategy of building the next generation for the national team. After the period of rebuilding the force, the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) continues to focus on investing in young players, aiming to shorten the gap between U22 and the national team. It is not excluded that they will continue to implement the policy of attracting Malaysian-origin players playing abroad to return to play for the youth team - a strategy that helped U22 Indonesia achieve success with the 32nd SEA Games gold medal and the 2025 Southeast Asian U23 championship.

Meanwhile, U22 Vietnam is preparing quite thoroughly. The group of 8 players who have just trained with the national team in two matches against Nepal in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers have brought valuable experience to the young squad. At the same time, the U22 Vietnam team has also completed a training trip in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to test the squad and test tactics.

The most important stage will take place in the training session next November, when the team will go to China to participate in the U22 international friendly tournament with the participation of U22 Korea, U22 Uzbekistan and host U22 China. This is considered a high-quality test to help young players hone their competitive spirit, perfect their skills, and at the same time be an important step forward before the 33rd SEA Games and further the 2026 U23 Asian finals.

In this tournament, coach Kim Sang-sik will directly take charge after two previous training sessions, handing over the responsibility to assistant Dinh Hong Vinh so that he can focus on the national team. The three upcoming matches in China will be an opportunity for Mr. Kim to shape the best framework for U22 Vietnam. The characteristic of youth football is that it is always highly volatile, when many players can be overage or promoted to the national team, forcing the coaching staff to constantly renew the force.

However, coach Kim Sang-sik has a favorable foundation: for two consecutive years (2024, 2025), he and the current generation of players have brought home the Southeast Asian U23 Championship, affirming the mettle and stability of the youth training system. With careful preparation time and appropriate calculations to increase the international match fund, U22 Vietnam is expected to complete the goal of reaching the final of the 33rd SEA Games, continuing the tradition of success of Vietnamese youth football in the regional arena.

Source: https://bvhttdl.gov.vn/u22-viet-nam-va-muc-tieu-gianh-hcv-sea-games-33-20251022111737584.htm