U23 Asia 2020: Will U23 Vietnam repeat its achievements?

Dear Bao• September 29, 2019 17:30

(Baonghean.vn) - Vietnamese fans are happy after the draw for the AFC U23 Championship. Vietnam U23 is in Group D with North Korea, Jordan and UAE, opponents that are not among the strongest in the continent. However, we need to be objective because the tournament held in Thailand next year will be very different from the tournament in China two years ago.

upper hand

In 2018, U23 Vietnam traveled to China to play in the continental tournament as a small team representing the Southeast Asian lowlands. After the failure at the 2017 SEA Games and Mr. Park, a coach who still made many people skeptical about his ability, for many people, U23 Vietnam was no different from a "underdog" when compared.

However, the fairy tale happened when U23 Vietnam overcame tough opponents such as Syria, Australia and South Korea to advance to the quarter-finals. Not stopping there, Park Hang-seo's team continued to defeat Iraq and Qatar to enter the continental final.

The miracle did not happen in the end when U23 Vietnam lost to U23 Uzbekistan in the final match. However, with the runner-up achievement of the continental tournament, U23 Vietnam has brought Vietnamese football to a new level in the continental arena.

U23 Việt Nam sẽ mang tâm thế mới ở VCK U23 châu Á.Ảnh Vietnamnet
U23 Vietnam will have a new mindset at the U23 Asian Cup. Photo: Vietnamnet
At that time, Asian opponents still had a subjective mentality when thinking that we were weak opponents. And when playing as the underdog, the style of playing with defense as strength brought unexpected success to Mr. Park Hang-seo's team.

And with subsequent achievements such as fourth place in the 2018 Asian Games, winning the 2018 AFF Cup, and being in the top 8 teams of the 2019 Asian Cup, Vietnamese football has truly risen to the level of international friends. That is a major obstacle for the current runner-up at the upcoming U20 Asian Cup. Because when the opponent has taken us seriously, it will be very difficult for us to play with a higher mindset.

The battle for the Olympic ticket

In the 2018 tournament, many strong teams did not have their strongest squads. However, in the upcoming 2020 AFC U23 Championship, the opponents will have really thorough preparations with quality players to aim for the goal of winning 1 of the 4 tickets to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

4 đội mạnh nhất sẽ đại diện châu Á dự Olympic Tokyo khiến cuộc đua thêm phần khốc liệt (Ảnh – AFC)
The four strongest teams will represent Asia at the Tokyo Olympics, making the race even more fierce. Photo: AFC
Therefore, the challenge for U23 Vietnam in Thailand is very, very big. Top candidates such as Japan, Korea, Australia are certainly the strongest teams. They are the top candidates with a high possibility of winning tickets to Tokyo in July 2020.

Besides, the new force named Qatar certainly will not sit still. Obviously, the journey in Thailand will be a "huge" challenge for teams that are trying to rise up in the continental arena like Vietnam.

From the position of the reigning runner-up, U23 Vietnam is facing a great opportunity to participate in the 2020 Olympics. However, the competition is very fierce when the opponents begin to "respect" us. Besides, with the 4 strongest teams of the tournament will participate in the Tokyo Olympics, the battle in Thailand early next year will become much more fierce.

Dear Bao