Nguyen Phi Hoang, the best and second best 'running machine' of U23 Vietnam; Indian chess prodigy defeats ChatGPT without looking at the chessboard

Nguyen Phi Hoang, the best "running machine" of U23 Vietnam

Nguyen Phi Hoang is considered an interesting bright spot in the journey of U23 Vietnam to win a ticket to the final match of U23 Southeast Asia 2025.

“I am very impressed with Phi Hoang. He plays with a lot of energy, strength and shows a high fighting spirit. I really like the situations where he goes up the wing and crosses the ball. I think Phi Hoang is one of the few players of U23 Vietnam who has played most impressively since the beginning of the U23 Southeast Asian tournament,” former midfielder Mai Tien Thanh gave compliments to his junior Phi Hoang, after the midfielder's impressive performances at the U23 Southeast Asian tournament 2025.

At the 2025 U23 Southeast Asian tournament, Phi Hoang is showing that he is one of the few most impressive players of U23 Vietnam. The ability to dribble at speed and handle the ball skillfully in a narrow area has made the difference for the midfielder born in 2003. Besides, Phi Hoang is also highly appreciated for his ability to go up the wing and cross the ball very well. Most recently, in the match against U23 Philippines in the semi-finals, Phi Hoang made his mark with 2 crosses that helped Dinh Bac and Xuan Bac score, helping U23 Vietnam win a ticket to the final match.

Phi Hoang plays without flashiness, plays simply and shows endurance on the left wing. Phi Hoang's situations on the wing are often simple, but always effective with the ability to bring the ball to the desired point. The midfielder of SHB Da Nang is considered the strongest player of U23 Vietnam with a strong, sturdy physique.

Not only scoring with impressive attacking ability, Phi Hoang also showed solidity in defense. The presence of Phi Hoang helped coach Kim Sang-sik feel secure to let Van Khang play higher up the attack line.

Vietnam women's sepak takraw team won Silver Medal at World Championship

After losing to Thailand, the Vietnamese women's sepak takraw team accepted second place in the women's team event of the 2025 Sepak Takraw World Championship (King's Cup).

In Bangkok (Thailand), the Vietnamese women's team lost 0-2 to host Thailand in the final match of the women's team event of the 2025 World Sepak Takraw Championship (King's Cup).

This is the first time that Vietnamese women's sepak takraw has participated in the world finals in the team event, after the victory over Korea in the semi-finals. However, against a Thailand team that is superior in class and experience, the Vietnamese girls could not create any surprises.

Although they could not win the championship, this is still a memorable milestone for Vietnamese women's sepak takraw on the world stage.

Smart like Real Madrid

In the volatile world of football, Real Madrid is not only famous for its blockbuster deals but also for its wise transfer philosophy down to every detail.

At the Bernabéu, the concept of “leaving and ending” is virtually non-existent. Every player who leaves the club is attached to a “string” that can be pulled back at any time. People call it the “Real Madrid formula” – an untouchable, unbreakable strategy.

“No one who leaves leaves completely” - this saying can be engraved on the coffee cup in President Florentino Perez's meeting room. For the Spanish Royal team, selling a player has never meant losing everything.

Instead, Real Madrid cleverly weaved in clever terms: retaining 50% ownership, preemptive rights or buyback rights. This gave the club both financial advantages and retained control over talents that could blossom in the future.

The most typical example is Fran Garcia. In 2021, he was bought by Rayo Vallecano for 2 million Euros, which seemed like the end. But thanks to the 50% ownership clause, Real only had to pay 5 million Euros to bring him back when his form exploded. It was a classic lesson in Real's "let go but not really let go" method.

With some special talents, Real Madrid plays it even safer with priority rights. When the home team receives an offer to buy a player, they must notify Real so that the club has the opportunity to buy him back. Takefusa Kubo is a typical example of this type of contract. Instead of losing a gem to a rival, Real Madrid always ensures that they have the right to "step in" before it's too late.

In other cases, Real have signed a buy-back option. Miguel Gutierrez could return to the Bernabeu for just €9 million, a bargain given his form at Girona. This clause is sometimes combined with retaining 50% ownership, as with Miguel or Victor Munoz (Osasuna). Even overseas deals like Obrador (Benfica) cannot escape the “Real Madrid formula”.

Not stopping there, Real also has a buy-back clause with Alex Jimenez (Milan) - 9 million Euros this year or 12 million Euros in 2026. Rafa Marin even has a "round-trip ticket price" of up to 30 million Euros. Clearly, Real always reserves a way back for the gems they have polished.

The “Real Madrid formula” is not simply a financial trick, but a philosophy of talent management. The club understands that not every young player has an immediate place in the first team, but they do not want to lose rough diamonds. They accept letting players go, mature in another environment, and then are ready to bring them back when they are ripe, just like how Dani Carvajal returned from Bayer Leverkusen.

Real Madrid not only protected the achievements of La Fabrica but also created a unique talent investment network. Perhaps, for many years to come, the saying "No one who leaves Real leaves completely" will still be the "guiding principle" for the transfer policy of "Los Blancos".

Indian Chess Prodigy Beats ChatGPT Without Looking at the Board

World No. 4 chess player Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu just had an interesting battle of wits with ChatGPT.

Remarkably, the 19-year-old player did not look at the board throughout the game, but still won convincingly against OpenAI's chatbot.

In the game, Praggnanandhaa held the white pieces with his back to the board. ChatGPT was assisted by a middleman who entered and executed the moves. Starting with the Sicilian Defense, ChatGPT fought back well before making a serious mistake on move 9, when he moved the black knight to b4 while the white pawn on c2 had disappeared. This mistake allowed the Indian player to gain the advantage and gradually control the game.

Not stopping there, ChatGPT continued to make many illegal moves, most notably the 23rd move when it suddenly “resurrected” the queen that had been captured earlier. Despite being surprised by the chatbot’s “magic” action, Praggnanandhaa still allowed the game to continue and ended in a victory.

In the final move, ChatGPT forgot to move his king when in check, allowing Praggnanandhaa to “take” the black king - an illegal move in real chess, but acceptable in an exhibition game.

After the match, the Indian prodigy commented: “ChatGPT played well in the early stages, but made many invalid errors. However, I believe it will improve in the future.”

It is known that ChatGPT is a product of OpenAI, a pioneer in the field of AI since the end of 2022.