Ky Son Children: Hope to contribute beautiful football matches

In previous seasons of the Nghe An Newspaper Cup Youth and Children tournament, the Ky Son team had to pack up and return home early when facing strong opponents. The big score difference when facing teams from the lowlands made the Ky Son team realize many valuable lessons from the physical and technical foundation of the players.

Taking advantage of the sunny hours, Ky Son children's football players actively practice on the field. Photo: Duy Khanh

Entering the tournament with a new mindset, this year, the Ky Son youth players have intensified their training regardless of the harsh weather in the border area. In the final stage, at the stadium of Muong Xen town, the two coaches Tran Van Hong and Nguyen Cong Minh are supplementing physical and tactical exercises for the players to be ready for the new season.

“We selected this year’s team very early, but the district could only select players from the Muong Xen town area. Players from other communes may also be passionate about football, but their homes are far away and they don’t have regular playgrounds and training grounds, so bringing them to live and practice on-site is very difficult and impossible. Currently, the team’s 19 players are very ready,” coach Tran Van Hong shared.

Physical foundation is still a problem that the Ky Son team is looking for a solution to. Photo: Duy Khanh

Focus on improving ball-winning. Photo: Duy Khanh

According to Mr. Hong, due to limited human resources, the district had to invite additional coaches who were teachers from local schools to train the players. This was also a practical and meaningful work, because teachers were close to the students and understood their psychology, so it would be easier for them to instruct and encourage them.

“These players are all my students at Muong Xen Town Primary School, so I understand them very well. Some of them are ethnic minorities, rarely go out, and have little social contact, so they are easily affected psychologically when competing. In addition to training them, we also have to talk to them regularly and encourage them to try harder,” continued teacher and coach Nguyen Cong Minh.

Eagerly practicing to prepare for the new season, player Nguyen Vo Viet Kien shared: I have loved football since I was 4 years old, I have watched every season of the Youth Cup - Children of Nghe An Newspaper without missing a match. The players in the lowlands play very well and have high skills. Hopefully our team will play a really good match against strong opponents to dedicate to the audience.

Goalkeeper training. Photo: Duy Khanh

As for player Nguyen Tran Gia Bao, he has a very lovely dream. For Gia Bao, participating in this tournament, he hopes that everyone will recognize his ability and soon be able to join the training center of Song Lam Nghe An Club. "I have been playing football since grade 2, and the teachers all see that I have a talent for this sport. I want to become an even more talented football player" - Gia Bao wishes.

Coaches Tran Van Hong and Nguyen Cong Minh also added that this year's season, Ky Son's training camp received high support from authorities at all levels, parents, and more importantly, the players' spirit is very high.

The players are hopeful for this season after 2 years of waiting due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Photo: Duy Khanh

However, due to too much work, having just finished organizing the District Sports Festival, although the players gathered early, they did not have much time to practice. In addition, the weather in the mountainous district of Ky Son this season is very harsh, in the morning the children have to go to school, and in the afternoon they can go out to the field to practice. However, all week, after practicing for a while, it rained heavily.

Although the conditions are still difficult, long-time coaches like Mr. Tran Van Hong hope that after this tournament, their players will be able to compete and bring the spirit of this king sport to spread to children in the highlands of Ky Son district.