Le Van Thuan (middle) - 19-year-old player is playing outstandingly in U22 Vietnam - Photo: VFF
Taiwan U22 is not a strong opponent when ranked 166th in the world , far behind Vietnam (ranked 109th). But the two victories of 5-0 and 2-1 also helped Vietnam U22 see its strengths as well as improve its limitations.
Feel secure with your attack capabilities
Despite many changes in the lineup in the two friendly matches with U22 Taiwan, the U22 Vietnam team still showed quite good attacking ability. Playing as the highest striker and then as a right winger in the 3-4-3 formation, Quoc Viet scored in both matches. This made coach Kim Sang Sik satisfied.
These are the two positions that Quoc Viet was assigned by acting head coach Dinh Hong Vinh in the previous 3 training sessions and now it is coach Kim Sang Sik's turn. After a 2024 - 2025 First Division season playing a lot at Phu Dong Ninh Binh Club (playing 20 matches, scoring 5 goals), Quoc Viet has shown great progress in his expertise.
Impressively performing on both wings, Phi Hoang and Le Van Thuan greatly improved the attacking ability of U22 Vietnam. Both scored in the 5-0 win over U22 Taiwan when they were brought on in the second half. In particular, Van Thuan continued to make a clear mark in the second training session with the U22 Vietnam team. Previously, this 19-year-old player scored for U22 Vietnam in an internal training match that lost 1-2 to the Vietnam team in the training session last May.
Playing only one half in the 2-1 win over U22 Taiwan, Khuat Van Khang also scored a beautiful opening goal from his signature free kick. Khuat Van Khang's talent and extensive experience in the Vietnam national team will be of great help to the U22 Vietnam team in upcoming tournaments.
Coach Kim Sang Sik is making good preparations for U22 Vietnam - Photo: TTO
Mr. Kim's difficult screening
Nguyen Van Truong and Viktor Le - two players were chosen to wear the captain's armband and both scored in the 5-0 win over U22 Taiwan. They will most likely be the leaders leading the play of the U22 Vietnam team. But choosing which position to play also gives coach Kim Sang Sik a "headache". Van Truong has been tested in the position of central midfielder and striker because of his good physique (1m82), while Vietnamese-American player Viktor Le is a left winger and central midfielder.
The attack line also made coach Kim Sang Sik think hard before reducing the shortlist from 35 to 26 players. Apart from the outstanding Quoc Viet and Thanh Nhan, the remaining strikers showed quite equal skill levels.
Once a quality striker, Dinh Bac's form is a question mark as he has just returned after a long injury. Newcomer Nguyen Ngoc My is highly regarded but his ability to integrate into the overall playing style needs more time. Even Dang Duong - the 1m84 tall striker who won the 2023 Southeast Asian U23 Championship with U23 Vietnam - needs to make more efforts.
The Vietnam U22 team currently has two overseas Vietnamese players in the squad. While midfielder Viktor Le has increasingly proven his talent, striker Bui Alex (Bohemians Praha 1905 team B) has yet to score in his second return to wear the Vietnam U22 jersey. This Czech-Vietnamese player was given the opportunity to play in the 2-1 win over Taiwan U22 but did not perform well and showed that he could not compete with domestic strikers.
The defense also forced coach Kim Sang Sik to make a choice when there are many quality central defenders. The U22 Vietnam team under head coach Dinh Hong Vinh is Le Van Ha (1m84) - Hieu Minh (1m84) - Nhat Minh (1m78).
Now, coach Kim Sang Sik has two more central defenders who are both experienced in the Vietnam national team, Pham Ly Duc (1m82) and have an impressive height, Dinh Quang Kiet (1m95). Even the remaining central defenders, Duc Anh and Tuan Phong, have shown their very good abilities.
The Vietnam U22 team will train in Ba Ria - Vung Tau until July 13 before leaving for Indonesia on the morning of July 14 to participate in the 2025 Southeast Asian U23 Championship. From now until then, coach Kim Sang Sik will have to review and evaluate the abilities of his players before choosing a suitable squad. With the quality players in hand, Mr. Kim can confidently head to the Southeast Asian arena.
NGUYEN KHOI
Source: https://tuoitre.vn/ong-kim-tu-tin-voi-u22-viet-nam-20250706090316606.htm
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