U23 Vietnam receives bad news before the semi-final match against U23 Philippines

(Dan Tri) - At the training session on the evening of July 23 to prepare for the semi-final match of the 2025 Southeast Asian U23 tournament, U23 Vietnam received bad news when central defender Pham Ly Duc did not appear on the training ground.

According to information from the Vietnam U23 team, center back Ly Duc suffered an ankle injury. He was allowed to stay at the hotel to rest and did not go to the training ground with his teammates on the evening of July 23.

The Vietnam U23 team took to the training field on the evening of July 23 without central defender Pham Ly Duc (Photo: VFF).

Although Ly Duc's injury is not too serious, coach Kim Sang Sik is still cautious. The Korean coach does not want to risk the health of one of the best central defenders he has at present.

Before the match with U23 Cambodia on July 22, Ly Duc was in pain. However, this player still played through the pain, before scoring the opening goal for U23 Vietnam in the above match, contributing to U23 Vietnam's 2-1 victory over U23 Cambodia.

If Pham Ly Duc cannot play in the semi-final match on July 25 against U23 Philippines, it will be a big loss for the team under coach Kim Sang Sik.

Ly Duc contributed a goal in the 2-1 victory of U23 Vietnam against U23 Cambodia on the evening of July 22 (Photo: VFF).

Currently, Mr. Kim is probably also preparing for the worst case scenario with the central defender who just left HAGL Club to join Hanoi Police Football Club (CAHN). In case Pham Ly Duc cannot play in the match against U23 Philippines, it is highly likely that central defender Le Van Ha will replace Ly Duc.

Le Van Ha played well at the U23 International Four-Nation Tournament in March this year in China. At that time, U23 Vietnam competed with U23 teams from China, South Korea and Uzbekistan. We finished second in the tournament.

The semi-final match between U23 Vietnam and U23 Philippines will take place at 4:00 p.m. on July 25 at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium in Jakarta (Indonesia).

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-thao/u23-viet-nam-don-tin-du-truoc-tran-ban-ket-gap-u23-philippines-20250723225253303.htm