Defender Le Tan Dung - The 17-year-old 'Steel Shield' of Nghe An football
As one of the most prominent faces of the Vietnam U17 team at the U17 Asian Finals, defender Le Tan Dung - a young player who grew up at the Song Lam Nghe An training center - is gradually asserting himself as a promising factor in the country's football.
Born in 2008, Le Tan Dung soon revealed his passion and talent for football. Having grown up in the training center of Song Lam Nghe An Club, Tan Dung is currently playing for Bac Ninh Club on loan, with the goal of gaining experience in a harsher competition environment.
Possessing an ideal physique with a height of 1m77 and a weight of 66kg, Tan Dung plays in the left-back position - a position that requires speed, strength and good tactical thinking. This player's strengths are the ability to judge situations, choose the right position and play aggressively, not afraid of collision. Not only that, Tan Dung also showed potential attacking skills, scoring a goal against U17 Oman in a friendly match before the U17 Asian Finals.
Not only successful at the youth team level, Tan Dung also achieved remarkable achievements with the Nghe An team. In 2023, Tan Dung won the National U15 Silver Medal with U15 Song Lam Nghe An. By 2025, this young player continued to assert himself when he was promoted to U19 Song Lam Nghe An and won the National U19 runner-up position, proving steady progress through each season.
At the 2025 AFC U17 Championship Finals held in the UAE, Le Tan Dung was one of the few players who received absolute trust from coach Cristiano Roland. This player started all three matches against U17 Australia, Japan and UAE, playing a total of 267 minutes. Although the home team could not advance after a 1-1 draw with the UAE, Tan Dung was still highly appreciated for his solid, calm performance and was not at all inferior to strong opponents at the continental level.
Sharing with Nghe An Newspaper reporters after the tournament, Le Tan Dung modestly admitted: “I need to improve further in terms of attack, learn more, perfect my skills and practice hard to become more mature. My upcoming goal is to strive to compete well at Bac Ninh Club.”
That is the affirmation of a young player who is always eager to improve, does not rest on his laurels and always sets high demands for himself – a valuable quality in the journey to conquer the top.
Although Vietnam U17 could not advance after a 1-1 draw with UAE U17, Le Tan Dung's performance still received much praise from experts for his confident and courageous performance, showing maturity beyond his age in a major tournament. Many people believe that if he continues to maintain his form and progressive spirit, Tan Dung can absolutely be a pillar of the national team in the near future.