Another Vietnamese player worth millions of dollars appears; Cong Phuong joins Vietnam national team, determined to 'tear the net' of Malaysia

Another Vietnamese player appears with a million dollar price tag

Nguyen Duc Chien is likely to become the next Vietnamese player to be valued at up to 1 million USD.

According to VTC News, midfielder Nguyen Duc Chien has not yet reached an agreement to extend his contract with The Cong Viettel. The two sides have not been able to agree on a signing bonus for the next 3 years of the contract. Duc Chien hopes to receive a number that matches his value.

Phu Dong Ninh Binh is the team that wants to have the service of the midfielder born in 1998. They are willing to spend about 7 billion VND/season for the player from Hai Duong. If he plays at Ninh Binh Stadium for 3 seasons, Duc Chien will pocket about 21 billion VND (nearly 1 million USD). This transfer fee is equivalent to what Pham Tuan Hai received from Hanoi FC.

Previously, Phu Dong Ninh Binh set a "peak" in the transfer market when paying 30 billion VND for 3 seasons with Nguyen Hoang Duc. The star ofVietnam teamreceived the highest "bribe" in V.League history. However, at this time, Duc Chien himself has not yet decided on a plan for his future.

U23 Vietnam in an "easy" group in the 2026 U23 Asian qualifiers

At the draw ceremony for the 2026 AFC U23 Championship qualifying round held on the afternoon of May 29 in Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia), the teams were divided into 4 seed groups based on the scoring system approved by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC).

In addition, the 11 host nations are placed in a separate pot and drawn in advance to ensure that each host is placed in a different group. The host teams are allocated positions in the group corresponding to their seeding.

On the rankings serving the seeding and draw for the 2026 AFC U23 Championship qualifying round, U23 Vietnam into group C, facing opponents Yemen, Singapore and Bangladesh. This is considered a fairly "easy" group for coach Kim Sang-sik and his team.

The 2026 AFC U23 Championship qualifiers will feature 44 national U23 teams, divided into 11 groups, competing in a round-robin format in the host country of each group from September 1 to 9, 2025. The 11 group winners and the four best runners-up will advance to the finals, to be held in Saudi Arabia in 2026.

Vietnam U23 will play at home as Vietnam is awarded the right to host a group in the 2026 AFC U23 Championship qualifiers. This is a definite advantage for coach Kim Sang-sik and his team in the campaign to compete for a ticket to the final round. According to the plan, before participating in the 2026 AFC U23 Championship qualifiers, Vietnam U23 will participate in the 2025 Southeast Asian U23 Championship, taking place in mid-July in Indonesia.

Marcus Rashford fled from MU to Barcelona

Rashford's representatives have met with Barcelona's big boss to discuss a transfer deal this summer. The English striker seems to be leaving MU because he is no longer in demand, after spending the second half of the season on loan at Aston Villa.

Rashford was linked with a move to Barcelona earlier this year but ultimately decided to join Villa Park. According to expert Fabrizio Romano, a new round of talks have taken place this week to discuss a permanent move to the Nou Camp.

Rashford is one of four options on the shortlist that the Catalan team has drawn up, aiming to add new recruits to their attack.

Sport reported that Barca's number one target is Liverpool's Luis Diaz. However, the deal to sign the Colombian striker is considered more expensive than the deal for Rashford. Rashford himself is quite excited about the prospect of playing for Barcelona. The 27-year-old striker wants to play for a big team in the Champions League.

However, Rashford would need to take a significant pay cut to join the Catalan club, as they cannot match the huge £350,000-a-week salary he is currently receiving at Old Trafford.

Barca will also make an initial offer to loan Rashford for a season with an option to buy next year. Meanwhile, MU wants to sell him to get a lot of money.

Cong Phuong joins Vietnam national team, determined to 'tear the net' of Malaysia

After nearly 2 years of absence, striker Nguyen Cong Phuong returned to the Vietnamese team, in preparation for the decisive match against Malaysia.

Early afternoon of May 29, Cong Phuong appeared at the Vietnam national team headquarters (Hanoi).

Cong Phuong's last call-up to the Vietnam national team was in September 2023, in a friendly match between Vietnam and Palestine at Thien Truong Stadium. In that match, under the guidance of coach Troussier, Cong Phuong scored a goal but was still criticized by the French coach.

After this match, the striker from Nghe An was absent from the Vietnam national team for nearly 2 years. It was not until this season, when he showed impressive performance for Binh Phuoc Club, and with many national team strikers such as Xuan Son, Vi Hao, and Van Toan absent due to injury, that Cong Phuong was called back by coach Kim Sang Sik.

Before joining the national team, Cong Phuong scored 7 goals in the First Division. Including the National Cup, the Binh Phuoc striker scored a total of 9 goals. With good form, especially his ability to take set pieces, the 30-year-old striker is expected to solve the problem of scoring for the Vietnamese team in the match against Malaysia on June 10.

According to the plan, after the friendly match with MU Club ended, Coach Kim Sang Sik and 4 players Duy Manh, Van Vi, Hai Long and Hoang Duc joined the Vietnam team. On May 30, the Vietnam team entered the first training session in Hanoi, preparing for the match against Malaysia, the final qualifying round of the 2027 Asian Cup./.