Why did the Vietnam U23 team lose, and lose so painfully?

TPO - What happened at Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal Sports City Stadium on Tuesday night, when the expected victory didn't come, instead resulting in a painful defeat? Let's examine why.

Coach Kim Sang-sik and his players were unable to reach the final. (Photo: AFC)

The 0-3 defeat against China U23 is truly hard to swallow. We were always thinking about a victory, about the upcoming final and a historic championship, creating a new miracle on Saudi Arabian soil. But after 90 minutes at Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal Sports City Stadium, all we got was a painful loss.

Actually, the main problem lies here. After four consecutive wins against formidable opponents, part of a 15-match winning streak under coach Kim Sang-sik, we became overly confident, from the fans to the players.

That's why we didn't anticipate, or prepare for, what the Chinese U23 team brought. Nobody thought that coach Antonio Puche would take such a risky move, even reversing the usual approach. Instead of the usual approach of a deep defensive line and refusing to participate in possession-based play, he instructed his players to attack, proactively control the ball, and dominate the game.

The Chinese U23 team displayed an unexpected performance. (Photo: AFC)

To accommodate this change, the Chinese U23 team also made six changes to their lineup. Notably, the familiar striker duo of Wang Yudong and Behram Abduweli were left out, making way for Xiang Yuwang and Kuai Jiwen. While the Yuwang-Jiwen pair may be weaker in tackles, they are technically skilled, agile, and intelligent in their movement and passing.

The Vietnam U23 team was completely surprised by the way the China U23 team started the match, and even more confused when they realized this wasn't a Plan B to launch an early attack, but rather Plan A they would stick to throughout the game. What we imagined about a passive team lacking attacking prowess turned out to be completely wrong. The China U23 team was very proactive and actively pushed the ball into the Vietnam U23 team's half, aggressively pressing to win possession and then organizing quick counter-attacks.

As a result, Coach Kim Sang-sik's team couldn't establish a rhythm and struggled to break out of their own half. It took a long time for us to regain some initiative and start organizing attacks. Unfortunately, disaster struck at that very moment with Hieu Minh's injury.

The U23 Vietnam players' disappointment as their promise of victory was not fulfilled. (Photo: AFC)

This turn of events, coupled with two quick goals conceded at the beginning of the second half, shattered the players' morale. As coach Kim Sang-sik admitted after the match, the game plans were impossible to execute when the events on the field completely disrupted everything.

The match situation worsened when the players lost confidence, failed to control their emotions (Ly Duc's red card is proof) and their legs (a series of mistakes that, if Trung Kien hadn't made an excellent correction, the score wouldn't have stopped at 0-3).

Because of overconfidence, we crumbled too easily when things didn't go as planned. Coach Kim Sang-sik himself said that he thought he and the players could quickly adapt and cope with everything, but that wasn't the case. The Vietnam U23 team couldn't provide answers in adversity, something they had done very well in the SEA Games 33 final.

Not the final, the Vietnam U23 team will play the third-place match against South Korea U23 on January 23rd. (Photo: AFC)

In any case, defeat has happened. And although they couldn't extend their winning streak or reach the dream final, the 2026 AFC U23 Championship was still an outstanding journey, exceeding the expectations of coach Kim Sang-sik and his team.

Over the past two weeks, the young Golden Star Warriors have shown remarkable maturity in both ability and character. Based on their performances, they reveal a bright future for a team built on a clear structure, playing style, and modern thinking. This generation is capable of competing with top opponents on the continental stage with a well-structured tactical system, relying not only on mental strength.

The bitter defeat at Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal Sports City Stadium will be a great lesson for them, helping them to continue to grow and improve, and then become a better version of themselves in other matches and other conquests.

Absolutely.

Watch the entire 2026 AFC U23 Asian Championship Finals on TV360 at https://tv360.vn. Enjoy a smooth multi-platform experience, rewind and replay, and free Viettel 4G/5G data.

Source: https://tienphong.vn/vi-sao-u23-viet-nam-thua-va-thua-dau-den-vay-post1814599.tpo