U23 Vietnam conceded 4 goals against U23 UAE
In theory, the two opponents that U23 Thailand just faced at the Doha Cup, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, are stronger than the two opponents of U23 Vietnam, Iraq and UAE, because Saudi Arabia and Qatar are football nations that have just had representatives participating in the 2022 World Cup.
However, against two very strong opponents, U23 Thailand played successfully: drew 2-2 with Saudi Arabia, won 1-0 with Qatar. On the contrary, U23 Vietnam lost 0-3 to Iraq, 0-4 to UAE, and did not score any goals in those two matches.
U23 Vietnam lost all 2 first matches at Doha Cup 2023 (Photo: VFF).
The important thing is that the playing style of U23 Thailand in the matches against Saudi Arabia and Qatar showed clarity, rhythm, and methodical attacks.
When pressured, the U23 Thai players remained unperturbed, calmly fought back and calmly coordinated attacks as they had been trained and practiced.
That is a maturity in terms of character, not simply luck. The character that the young players of the Land of the Golden Pagoda have does not come naturally. The quality and continuity of the Thai-League (not interrupted as often as the V-League of Vietnamese football) helps the Thai U23 players become more professional and mature.
Even Thailand U23 coach Issara Sritaro admitted this: "Some times in the match we played well, some other times we didn't play well. Thailand U23 also made some mistakes against Qatar, but everything we showed on the field was what we experienced on the training ground."
The current squad of U23 Thailand and U23 Vietnam participating in Doha Cup 2023 will mostly be present at the SEA Games. And looking at the squad of U23 Thailand, it is impossible not to appreciate them.
Thailand U23 is playing extremely well at the Doha Cup (Photo: Matichon).
The young Thai team has players who have a lot of experience from the last SEA Games, most notably central defender Jonathan Khemdee (1m90 tall), who scored 2 goals for U23 Thailand in the 2 recent matches against Saudi Arabia and Qatar. In addition, captain midfielder Airfan Doloh is also very noteworthy.
Thailand U23 has added 2 players who just won the AFF Cup 2022, including left-back Chatmongkol Rueangthanarot and midfielder Channarong Promsrikaew.
Among them, Chatmongkol Rueangthanarot was the one who replaced Theerathon Bunmathan in the Thai team at the AFF Cup, when Theerathon Bunmathan was moved to the middle to play as an organizing midfielder.
In addition, as usual, Thai youth football continues to introduce promising new faces. That is striker Teerasak Poeiphimai (20 years old, 1m82 tall), who has created a lot of pressure for the Saudi Arabia and Qatar teams in recent days, and has also scored a goal against U23 Saudi Arabia.
There is also German-born defender Maximilian Steinbauer (21 years old, 1m86 tall), who can play both right wing and center back, adding steel to the defense of the Golden Temple team.
In the 30th and 31st SEA Games, 2019 and 2022, U22 and U23 Vietnam won the championship thanks to each tournament we added 3 players over 23 years old, to support the young players (U23 Thailand in the last 2 SEA Games did not add this type of player).
This year, the Southeast Asian Sports Council does not allow teams to add players over 22 years old like the 30th and 31st SEA Games. Therefore, it is unclear how the U22 Vietnam team will fare when facing U22 Thailand (ie the U23 team participating in the Doha Cup) if they are not reinforced with players over 22 years old?
U23 Thailand shocked when defeating U23 Qatar in Doha Cup
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