U23 Vietnam: Building faith from hardship

In the preparation campaign for FIFA Days this March, the Vietnam National Team is the center of attention, because the 2 matches with the Indonesian National Team will decide whether they will continue to the 3rd qualifying round of the World Cup and the "fate" of French coach Philippe Troussier with Vietnamese football.

In fact, the story is not just that, when on this occasion, U23 Vietnam was also gathered, also "mixed" with the seniors in the Vietnam National Team and played 2 international friendly matches with U23 Tajikistan, aiming for the U23 Asian Finals and looking for a ticket to the upcoming Paris Olympics.

Looking back at the tournaments that the Vietnam National Team or U23 Vietnam have recently participated in in the region and continent, besides the joy and hope for the progress made, everyone sees countless worries about the difference in physique and physical strength with the top teams in the continent. Meanwhile, the massive naturalization of players from regional opponents has also made it difficult for Vietnamese players in many big and small matches.

The success achieved in the past 5 years under the leadership of Mr. Park Hang-seo is a real encouragement, a testament to the development and progress of Vietnamese football. But our opponents never stop, do not accept being left behind and are looking for ways, knowing how to overcome. The period of stumbling, getting used to the new playing style of Mr. Philippe Troussier is the opportunity for the opponent to stick with and thoroughly challenge Vietnamese football.

The failure of the Vietnam National Team at the 2023 Asian Cup and the U23 Vietnam team at the 32nd SEA Games under Mr. Troussier shows that the philosophy of ball control is not wrong, but it requires good physical strength and a high level of football, and right now very few players can meet that requirement. Therefore, many veterans that Mr. Troussier had dismissed have now been called back, and the young players who have been trusted recently may not have a place in the starting lineup of the Vietnam National Team against Indonesia this time.

But training and nurturing young talent for Vietnamese football is certainly still the main path and main goal at any time and stage. The gathering of U23 Vietnam this time, as mentioned above, seems to be taking place quietly, but it aims at many short-term and long-term goals of Vietnamese football.

All the main players of U23 Vietnam were called up such as Van Chuan, Van Binh, Duy Cuong, Nguyen Hoang, Van Cuong, Manh Quynh, Quoc Viet... present, along with some potential players who are temporarily injured and waiting such as Xuan Tien, Nam Hai... Some U23 players who have been given important responsibilities in the Vietnam National Team such as Van Viet, Thai Son, Minh Trong, Tuan Tai, Van Khang, Van Tung... can be "assembled" back at any time.

Mr. Troussier and the coaching staff have certainly closely followed the performances of the young players in V-League 1 and 2, and in the National Cup. The young players of Song Lam Nghe An have been improving as they play, which is one of the bright spots worth mentioning in the expected growth of youth football today.

Remember how Van Viet resolved extremely difficult situations in front of the home team's goal, how Manh Quynh fought back and forth, his confident and brave dribbling, his "killer" kicks... to see clearly that opportunities are opening up for excellent players and they will certainly not disappoint the trust of their teachers, teammates and fans.

As mentioned, in the coming time, all attention will be on the steps of the Vietnam National Team, the dramatic matches on March 21 and March 26 with the opponent Indonesia. That is completely correct and necessary. But do not forget the efforts of the U23 Vietnam players, the difficult but extremely useful matches in Tajikistan on March 20 and 23, 2024.

After all, this young generation is the future of Vietnamese football, when they are trained properly, compete and compete regularly with strong opponents and are gradually given enough opportunities and conditions to gradually close the gap with the continent's top opponents in the coming time./.