U23 Vietnam has a smooth start at the 2025 Southeast Asian U23 tournament

Dominating the opponent, scoring 3 goals and not encountering any unfortunate injuries... are the positive results of the reigning champion U23 Vietnam on the first day of their journey to defend the tournament title.

Khuat Van Khang's bright spot

Before the tournament, experts assessed that U23 Vietnam had a balanced core force but lacked a "leader" of sufficient caliber to control the game. In the list of 23 players participating in this tournament, coach Kim Sang-sik called up quite a few midfielders, creating competition for the starting lineup.

Vietnam U23 team had a smooth start - Photo 1.

Center back Hieu Minh (4) scored 2 goals, and Van Khang (11) opened the scoring for U23 Vietnam in a big win over U23 Laos. Photo: VFF

In the opening match, Mr. Kim prioritized the players who had been called up to the national team (A) such as: Khuat Van Khang, Nguyen Thai Son, Nguyen Van Truong, Nguyen Dinh Bac, Nguyen Quoc Viet, Pham Ly Duc or goalkeeper Tran Trung Kien. This group of players contributed to helping U23 Vietnam complete the set goal, but only Khuat Van Khang left an impression.

In the role of a bridge between the two lines, captain Khuat Van Khang regularly attacked and defended. The young talent of The Cong Viettel was also the one who opened the score in the 18th minute with a tricky one-touch shot within 16.50m.

Van Khang had no less than 4 shots threatening the U23 Laos goal. Therefore, when his teammates Thai Son, Quoc Viet, Dinh Bac and Van Truong left the field one after another due to physical decline, Van Khang was still kept on the field by coach Kim Sang-sik.

Need to improve the quality of the pass

U23 Vietnam used a 3-4-3 tactical formation alternating with 3-4-1-2 with 2 "virtual" strikers, Quoc Viet and Dinh Bac. Possessing a physical foundation superior to their Lao counterparts, coach Kim Sang-sik's team proactively raised their formation from the start, dominated the game and put pressure on the opponent, forcing them to defend.

Although they scored 3 goals against U23 Laos, coach Kim Sang-sik's players still struggled in their attack and finishing. They had 18 shots but only 7 were on target, U23 Vietnam lacked precision in their finishing. In addition to Van Khang's goal, which was inspired by his training, Hieu Minh's double (in the 71st and 84th minutes) came from the individual efforts of this central defender.

Although controlling the ball up to 80%, the quality of the passes of the Vietnamese players was not high. Notably, in decisive situations, Mr. Kim's students showed indecision, leading to wrong "address" passes, missing opportunities to create breakthroughs and surprise the opponent.

Laos and Cambodia are considered weaker opponents than Vietnam, so the group stage is an opportunity for Mr. Kim's students to "run and line up at the same time". If the team cannot overcome the above limitations, the journey to defend the throne this year will become difficult, when strong teams like Indonesia and Thailand are very strong in counter-attacking quickly, punishing the opponent's mistakes.

Vietnam U23 team had a smooth start - Photo 2.