Coach Miura ignored Xuan Truong when finalizing the list of U23 Vietnam players

Six HAGL players were called up to prepare for the upcoming U23 Asian finals, but among them, central midfielder Luong Xuan Truong is not included.

Cong Phuong, Tuan Anh, Dong Trieu, Hong Duy, Van Toan and goalkeeper Van Tien are the players from HAGL who were called up this time. These players are competing in the U21 International tournament taking place at Thong Nhat Stadium, Ho Chi Minh City - where coach Toshiya Miura is often present to monitor and select.

Most of HAGL's prominent faces have the opportunity to play for U23 Vietnam this time. Photo: Duc Dong.

Xuan Truong is a member of the most talked about trio of HAGL, along with Cong Phuong and Tuan Anh. He was once the captain of the U19 Vietnam team and HAGL, a skillful midfielder with good tactical vision, ability to create and take free kicks. However, the talent from Tuyen Quang often has health problems recently. Before the 2015 SEA Games, because he did not recover in time, Xuan Truong was sent back to his club.

He is now playing normally. In the match where U21 HAGL won U21 Myanmar 4-3 yesterday, Xuan Truong was the one who made a smart pass for Cong Phuong to escape and face the goalkeeper to score the equalizer 1-1. After the match, the midfielder wearing the number 6 shirt was voted the best player of the match.

For midfielder Hong Duy, this is the first time he has been called up to the Vietnam U23 team. Due to injury, Tuan Anh was unable to attend the 2015 SEA Games, while Cong Phuong, Van Tien and Van Toan were all students of Coach Miura in the tournament in Singapore - where the Vietnam U23 team won the bronze medal.

The absence of Luong Xuan Truong may cause confusion at this time. Photo: Duc Dong.

The list of 29 players gathered this time also includes individuals who played outstandingly in the national U21 and international U21 tournaments this year, such as Van Thanh, Duy Manh, Duy Khanh, Huu Dung, Tuan Tai, Tien Dung...

The Vietnam U23 team will gather from December 1 in Hanoi. During this time, coach Miura and his team will have three friendly matches with Japanese clubs. The team will play two matches with the semi-professional team JFL Selection, on December 12 and 14, in empty stadiums. After that, they will play against Cerezo Osaka (J-League 2, on December 17). Coach Miura will then finalize the list of 23 players to go to Qatar to participate in the AFC U23 Championship finals.

In this tournament, the team will meet U23 Jordan (January 14, 2016), U23 Australia (January 17) and U23 UAE (January 20).

List of 29 players called up to the Vietnam U23 team:

Goalkeeper:Nguyen Thanh Tuan (PVF), Phi Minh Long (Hanoi T&T), Pham Van Tien (HAGL), Tran Dinh Minh Hoang (Hue), Nguyen Hoai Anh (Quang Ninh)

Defender:Pham Hoang Lam (DTLA), Bui Tien Dung, Nguyen Trong Dai (Viettel), Dao Duy Khanh, Nguyen Van Dung (Hanoi T&T), Nguyen Thanh Hien (Dong Thap), Pham Manh Hung (SLNA), Duong Van Khoa (Quang Ninh), Tran Huu Dong Trieu (HAGL).

Midfielder:Nguyen Tuan Anh, Nguyen Phong Hong Duy (HAGL), Dao Duy Manh, (Hanoi T&T), Nguyen Huu Dung (Thanh Hoa), Huynh Tan Tai (DTLA), Tran Duy Khanh (Binh Duong), Ho Ngoc Thang, Vo Huy Toan (Da Nang), Pham Duc Huy (Hanoi).

Forward:Pham Van Thanh (Hanoi T&T), Nguyen Cong Phuong, Nguyen Van Toan (HAGL), Le Thanh Binh (Thanh Hoa), Ho Tuan Tai, Pham Xuan Manh (SLNA)

According to VNE