U21 Song Lam Nghe An and challenges at the 2024 National U21 Tournament

Face the defending champion

It can be affirmed that although Song Lam Nghe An Club has had ups and downs, its youth training has never deviated from its trajectory and has always made a splash when participating in youth tournaments organized by the Vietnam Football Federation.

At the National U21 Football Tournament, after 27 times of organization, U21 Song Lam Nghe An has won 5 championships. The Nghe team is only behind Hanoi with 1 less championship. In the 2023 season, U21 Song Lam Nghe An continues to play well and participates in the final match of the tournament.

However, in the final match, U21 Song Lam Nghe An had to let U21 PVF step up to the highest position, after losing in the unfortunate penalty shootout. It is worth mentioning that U21 Song Lam Nghe An scored the first goal, but in the middle of the second half, the opponent equalized the score and brought the match to penalty kicks.

Going into the 2024 season, there will be 28 teams registered to participate, divided into 5 groups, playing a round robin, selecting the 10 best teams from the 5 groups and the best third-placed team to enter the final round. In case the host team of the final round finishes the qualifying round in the list of 11 teams with the best results in the 5 groups, then the next best third-placed team will qualify for the final round.

According to the arrangement and zoning of the qualifying round given by the organizing committee, U21 Song Lam Nghe An will be in group B including: PVF, Dong A Thanh Hoa, Song Lam Nghe An, Hue, Nguyen Duy Quang Ngai, Luxury Ha Long. Group B will compete at the PVF Youth Football Training Center.

This is considered a difficult group with 3 strong teams participating, namely Song Lam Nghe An, Dong A Thanh Hoa and PVF. In particular, Song Lam Nghe An will have the opportunity to reclaim their old debt when they met U21 PVF early in the qualifying round. However, this is not easy for coach Nguyen Van Vinh and his team. Because according to experts, U21 PVF not only possesses a team with equal expertise but also plays at home. Therefore, to go far, coach Nguyen Van Vinh and his team need to calculate carefully before using all their strength against PVF. Perhaps the goal that U21 Song Lam Nghe An needs to aim for is to compete with U21 Thanh Hoa. If they get a positive result in the Thanh Nghe Tinh derby, U21 Song Lam Nghe An will have a bright chance in their journey to find a ticket to the final round.

Difficulty in sharing forces

Participating in the 2024 National U21 qualifying round, U21 Song Lam Nghe An registered 30 players. However, in reality, coach Nguyen Van Vinh's team will not have the services of goalkeeper Van Binh, Bao Ngoc; defenders Le Nguyen Hoang, Hoang Minh Hoi, Nguyen Mai Hoang; midfielders Nguyen Quang Vinh, Le Dinh Long Vu, Nguyen Trong Tuan, Pham Nguyen Quoc Trung and striker Phung Van Nam.

These players are being called up to the National U19 team to participate in the 2024 Southeast Asian U19 tournament. It can be said that the names mentioned above are considered notable players of Nghe An football at the present time. In particular, Nguyen Quang Vinh and Le Dinh Long Vu have played impressively in the V-League 2023/24. The absence of the above two players will greatly affect the attacking style of Nghe An U21.

However, according to the General Director of Song Lam Nghe An: "We will create conditions for players to serve the national team. Because when participating in a high-class football environment, young players will mature faster, thereby having the opportunity to develop their careers in the future."

It can be affirmed that with this point of view, U21 Song Lam Nghe An will be more or less affected in terms of strength. However, if we consider the long-term vision, it will bring benefits to the players and the first team of Song Lam Nghe An.

And so, U21 Song Lam Nghe An will face many challenges when they do not have the strongest force. However, who knows, "necessity is the mother of invention", because in football, not every team with a good force will be successful. Hopefully, U21 Song Lam Nghe An will find a suitable playing style with the current personnel to bring about high achievements this season./.