U.23 Vietnam and the transformation journey under the hands of coach Kim Sang-sik

INHERITANCE AND UPGRADE

The performance of the U.23 Vietnam team at the U.23 Southeast Asian tournament is the result of a long process of accumulation, in which we cannot fail to mention the legacy of coach Philippe Troussier. The French coach may have failed, but his efforts to rejuvenate the team are very valuable. Many young faces such as Dinh Bac, Van Khang, Van Truong, Quoc Viet, Phi Hoang, Thai Son... were soon given the opportunity by Mr. Troussier to compete in big arenas such as the 2023 Asian Cup or the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, so they accumulated a lot of battle experience.

U.23 Việt Nam và hành trình lột xác dưới bàn tay HLV Kim Sang-sik- Ảnh 1. — The U.23 Vietnam team has made remarkable progress thanks to the fair competition that coach Kim Sang-sik has always built.

Looking more broadly, the U.23 Vietnam team has a solid foundation thanks to the strong support of professional football teams when investing in youth football.

The starting lineup of the U.23 Vietnam team in the final match of the U.23 Southeast Asian Championship against Indonesia had 8/11 players who had played in the V-League for many years. The image of the elite V-League players on the bench such as Thai Son, Le Viktor... showed that the U.23 Vietnam team is very strong.

As for Cong Phuong - who scored the only goal against U.23 Indonesia to help U.23 Vietnam win the championship, he has played 20 matches for The Cong Viettel in the V-League. Thanks to that, we have witnessed a generation of U.23 Vietnam playing steadily, soberly and always keeping calm to implement tactical ideas. That "powder" has been washed and kneaded by coach Kim Sang-sik into the cohesive playing style of the U.23 Vietnam team. If Mr. Troussier has planted the seeds, Mr. Kim has fulfilled his responsibility to upgrade and develop this generation of potential players.

HEALTHY COMPETITION HELPS PLAYERS IMPROVE

Coach Kim Sang-sik arrived when Vietnamese football was in decline, but he brought new vitality and helped the Vietnamese team win the AFF Cup 2024. In the 2025 Southeast Asian U.23 tournament, for the first time directly leading the Vietnamese U.23 team, the 1976-born coach continued to leave his mark thanks to his reasonable and decisive use of people. Dinh Bac, Quoc Viet, Le Viktor, Ngoc My... were fully exploited to promote their strength. His letting Cong Phuong play in the starting lineup in the two semi-finals and final was also a special way of using people, helping Cong Phuong confidently shine at the right time. Many people may be surprised when Xuan Bac was the starting lineup instead of Thai Son, but Xuan Bac fulfilled his role very well when trusted by coach Kim.

The stories of Cong Phuong, Xuan Bac and Anh Quan are proof of Mr. Kim's philosophy of fair competition, where every player has the opportunity to show themselves. His "saying is doing, clearly" helps players truly believe that everyone dares to show themselves and compete with their teammates. That is the motivation for the U.23 Vietnam team to change clearly through each match. The change in playing style, based on the 2 formations 3-5-2 and 3-4-3, helps U.23 Vietnam play flexibly and is difficult for opponents to predict. Therefore, the young Vietnamese players played very well in the final match to win the Southeast Asian championship for the third consecutive time.

From the success of this tournament, the U.23 Vietnam players will confidently move on to the next stage with important tournaments in the coming time.

In the immediate future, the U.23 Vietnam team will focus on the goal of winning the 33rd SEA Games in December in Thailand, followed by the U.23 Asian Championship and the 2026 ASIAD.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/u23-viet-nam-va-hanh-trinh-lot-xac-duoi-ban-tay-hlv-kim-sang-sik-185250730001159503.htm