Director of Song Lam Nghe An Youth Football Training Center: 'It's difficult to select athletes'

A reporter from Nghe An Newspaper had a discussion with Mr. Tran Quang Dung - Director of the Song Lam Nghe An Youth Football Training Center - to clarify the direct impact on the selection of athletes for this leading youth training academy in Vietnam.

PV: What role does the Nghe An Newspaper Cup Youth and Children's Football Tournament play in selecting talent for the Song Lam Nghe An training academy?

Mr. Tran Quang Dung:This has been our official recruitment channel for many years. Through this tournament, we discover talented players with outstanding competitive qualities to bring in for long-term training. Without the Nghe An Newspaper Cup, the recruitment efforts of Song Lam Nghe An would be greatly affected.

For example, in 2021, due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, the tournament could not be held. As a result, we did not recruit enough players to meet our targets as in previous years. From 215 targets, we had to reduce them to 200 due to a lack of quality candidates. We could not recruit indiscriminately; we had to rely on observation and actual performance in the tournament. Without the Nghe An Newspaper Cup Youth and Children's Football Tournament, the selection process faced significant difficulties.

PV:Could you share specific figures regarding the 2024 selection process through the Nghe An Newspaper Cup Youth and Children's Football Tournament?

Mr. Tran Quang Dung:In 2024, our U10 team recruited 33 players, of whom over 90% had previously competed in the Nghe An Newspaper Cup Youth and Children's Football Tournament. The U12 team also added nearly half of its squad from this tournament. This is clear evidence of the tournament's role in our recruitment system. Without the tournament, these numbers wouldn't exist.

PV:In 2025, the Nghe An Newspaper Cup Youth and Children's Football Tournament will not be held. How will this affect Song Lam Nghe An's recruitment efforts?

Mr. Tran Quang Dung:When we received the news that the Nghe An Newspaper Cup Youth Football Tournament would be canceled this year, we were very worried. This was especially true for the players born in 2013 and 2015 – who are the key candidates for the U11 and U13 teams next year. Without a playing field, we have no basis to assess their abilities or potential.

The absence of such a high-quality tournament is a major disadvantage for Song Lam Nghe An in particular and Nghe An's youth football in general. It not only deprives them of opportunities to recruit players, but also negatively impacts the quality of long-term training.

PV:Do you have any ideas to help this tournament continue in the coming years?

Mr. Tran Quang Dung:I sincerely hope the tournament will be restored soon. After Nghe An province merged its administrative units and transitioned to a two-tiered local government model, the organization of the tournament needs to be adjusted to suit the new situation.

After the merger, the entire province has approximately 130 communes. In my opinion, these could be divided into preliminary competition clusters. Each cluster would organize competitions in a group stage format, from which the best teams would advance to the finals. The finals should be held centrally in a convenient location within the province.

For effective implementation, coordination and guidance from the Nghe An Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism are essential. The Department will play a guiding and supporting role for localities in forming teams and organizing preliminary rounds. This approach is similar to the model used by the Vietnam Football Federation in organizing national youth tournaments.

Organizing the event in this format not only ensures professional quality but also provides more opportunities for children to compete and showcase their abilities. At the same time, it's an effective way for us to discover and select talents for youth training, and most importantly, to maintain a healthy and beneficial summer playground for children throughout the province.

PV:Thank you for the conversation!