Midfielder of Song Lam Nghe An and once worked as a reporter

Once a reporter

In 2017, after winning the National U11 Championship with U11Lam River Nghe An, Pham Nguyen Quoc Trung is one of two players chosen as ambassadors representing Vietnam to attend the Gazprom Tournament, as well as breathe the atmosphere of the 2018 World Cup.

Participating in the Gazprom Tournament, Quoc Trung plays the role of a young reporter collecting information, presenting, making reports, writing articles about the tournament as well as all activities of the program.

"I still remember clearly the first time I participated in such a big program. That program gathered many friends of the same age from many countries around the world. Here, I played the role of a reporter to observe and have conversations with friends from all over the world," Quoc Trung shared.

During the reporter experience program, Quoc Trung observed and learned many good qualities from players from many countries. In addition, the midfielder from Song Lam Nghe An also had the opportunity to talk with his peers.

"In a large auditorium, with many friends from many different countries, I was very proud to tell them about Vietnamese people - full of determination and kindness; about football in my homeland, where there are many children, despite many difficulties, but love to play football," Quoc Trung shared.

The 6-day trip to Russia opened Quoc Trung's eyes and gave him a chance to learn more about people in different countries. This helped the midfielder born in 2006 gain many useful lessons, which he will use for his future.

Also on this trip, Quoc Trung got to watch the opening match of the 2018 World Cup. That was a beautiful memory, motivating the midfielder from Song Lam Nghe An to strive to become a good player in the future.

Returning to Song Lam Nghe An, Quoc Trung has made constant efforts to always be a mainstay player in the youth teams of Nghe An football training center. After the success in the National Children's Championship in 2017, Quoc Trung, as a winger, contributed greatly to helping U13 Song Lam Nghe An win the National Youth Championship in 2019.

After this tournament, Quoc Trung decided to change his playing position. The midfielder from Quynh Luu was given the role of an anchor midfielder by coach Le Van Hung (U14 SLNA). This is considered a turning point in the career of the player born in 2006.

Struggling to adapt to a new role

"Seeing that I had the right qualities to play central midfielder, when I joined the U14 Song Lam Nghe An team, the teachers let me try my hand at this position. Defensive midfielder is where many qualities converge and I had to work very hard to adapt," Quoc Trung said.

Although his physique is not really ideal, in return Quoc Trung plays enthusiastically, possesses good personal techniques, so he is quite strong in situations of escaping pressing. In addition, the midfielder born in 2006 can also make relatively stable transition passes. Those are the strengths that have helped Pham Nguyen Quoc Trung always be a mainstay player at U17 Song Lam Nghe An participating in the 2022 National U17.

Although at the 2022 National U17 Tournament, the Nghe An team only won the Bronze Medal, the midfielder from Quynh Luu had an impressive performance, and was then called up by coach Hoang Anh Tuan.Vietnam U17participate in the qualifying round and final round of the 2023 AFC U17 Championship.

In this tournament, Quoc Trung was the number 1 choice for the defensive midfielder position in the U17 Vietnam squad. Although he could not help U17 Vietnam win a medal, Quoc Trung made an impression in the eyes of the audience and experts.

This is also the premise to help the midfielder of Song Lam Nghe An continue to be present in the U18 or U20 Vietnam team.

In addition, with successful performances at the Nghe An youth football training center and the national youth teams, Quoc Trung was promoted to the first team by the Song Lam Nghe An coaching board to participate in the V-League 2024/25. The appearance of Quoc Trung will help Song Lam Nghe An strengthen the defensive midfielder position, which is currently a weak point of this team.

However, due to being busy with the U20 Vietnam team, Quoc Trung has not had the opportunity to play in the V-League yet. Hopefully, this player will practice hard and soon be able to test himself in the highest football environment in Vietnam.