Defender Vuong Van Huy – the steel shield of Song Lam Nghe An

Hailing from the rice-growing region of Yen Thanh, Van Huy entered football after winning the Best Player award at the Nghe An Newspaper Cup Youth Football Tournament in 2012. He then joined the Song Lam Nghe An academy and consistently featured in the starting lineup for national youth tournaments.

The defender, born in 2001, played for the youth teams. Lam River, Nghe AnHe won the National U13 Championship in 2014, a Silver Medal at the National U17 Championship, and two Bronze Medals at the National U19 Championship… In 2022, Van Huy was promoted to play in the V.League by coach Nguyen Huy Hoang, but that season, Van Huy was unable to secure a starting spot due to the competition from many other good full-backs.

However, in the 2023 V.League season, Van Huy made his debut in the V.League in a match against Hai Phong. That was a pivotal season with 11 matches and 620 minutes of playing time, during which Van Huy became the number one right-back for Song Lam Nghe An.

Because in the 2023/24 season, when Song Lam Nghe An's defense lacked its best players due to Ho Van Cuong playing for Hanoi Police on loan and Dinh Hoang frequently suffering injuries, Van Huy was the first choice at right back.

In his third season playing in the V.League, Van Huy became a key player for Song Lam Nghe An, appearing in 23 matches and playing 1,829 minutes, becoming one of the players with the most appearances. Currently, in the 2024/25 season, Van Huy has participated in all 18 matches for the Nghe An team, playing 1,483 minutes, and along with goalkeeper Van Viet, is one of the team's players with the most appearances.

Except for a red card in an away match against Becamex Binh Duong before the 2023/24 season, Van Huy has never missed a game due to accumulating three yellow cards. The reason Van Huy has never received three yellow cards in a season is because his strength and stamina give him a very high win rate in challenges, including aerial duels.

Van Huy's speed and physical challenges, along with his relentless pursuit of the ball, always proved very frustrating for opposing attackers. Professional statistics also show that Van Huy has a relatively high pass accuracy rate (36 average passes per match with a 79% accuracy rate). In addition, he recovers the ball 6 times per 90 minutes in the V.League. Because of his defensive advantage, Van Huy is also the most fouled player for Song Lam Nghe An. His ball-winning rate is only lower than that of center-back Hoang Van Khanh.

Despite being only 1.66m tall, Van Huy, with his sturdy build and tenacious, passionate playing style, is one of the players who runs the most in the team, averaging 9-10 km per match. Even more remarkably, in some matches, he has sprinted to speeds of up to 32 km/h, faster than foreign player Michael Olaha. This is the highest top speed among all players at Song Lam Nghe An.

Previously, Van Huy was often deployed as a right-back due to the absence of Van Cuong and Dinh Hoang, and due to certain issues and errors in coordination with teammates. However, playing on the left wing has helped the number 2 player of Song Lam Nghe An perform much better and more reliably. In fact, this season Van Huy has even provided one assist and initiated many effective attacks for his team.

Overall, whether playing on the right or left wing, regardless of who plays up front, Van Huy performs his duties well and effectively. He has become a position that provides the most reassurance to the Song Lam Nghe An coaching staff. In some specific situations, Van Huy also needs to focus more to become a more complete full-back. That's why he makes an effort to communicate with center-back Zaracho, even though the Paraguayan defender's English is very limited.

According to the coaches who directly trained Vuong Van Huy, if this player further hones his skills and individual abilities, he could even reach a higher level and be capable of playing for the national team. In any case, Van Huy's positive contributions to Song Lam Nghe An are a welcome sign for the player himself and for the team's youth development policy, prioritizing homegrown talent.