FIFA has a special move to help coach Kim Sang-sik and U.23 Vietnam shine in Asia

The Vietnam U.23 team is considered the top candidate for the top spot in Group C, the 2026 AFC U.23 Championship qualifiers. Coach Kim Sang-sik's team is currently stronger than when they won the Southeast Asian championship in July.

Increasing competition in U.23 Vietnam

In the 2026 U.23 Asian qualifiers, the U.23 Vietnam team is in Group C with Bangladesh, Singapore and Yemen. U.23 Vietnam plays the Asian qualifiers with home field advantage in Viet Tri ( Phu Tho ), and has a balanced and experienced squad, having just won the U.23 Southeast Asian championship just over a month ago.

Overseas Vietnamese midfielder Tran Thanh Trung

Photo: Ninh Binh FC

In particular, aiming for the 2026 U.23 Asian qualifiers, coach Kim Sang-sik added two very notable faces, compared to the squad that won the U.23 Southeast Asian Championship in July. The first face is Vietnamese-Bulgarian player Tran Thanh Trung. Recently, coach Kim Sang-sik received very good news. FIFA made an important decision: recognizing Thanh Trung to only play for Vietnamese football, according to his personal wishes.

The midfielder currently playing for Ninh Binh is one of the top 3 young faces in Bulgaria last season. Thanks to his training in Europe, playing for the youth teams of CSKA Sofia and Slavia Sofia (Bulgaria), Tran Thanh Trung has a modern playing style, few touches, good tactical vision, which is a necessary factor to refresh the midfield of U.23 Vietnam.

The appearance of Thanh Trung helps increase the competitiveness of the Vietnam U.23 team. The fact that this player can play in many different roles in the center of midfield, from defensive support to offensive support, will contribute to stimulating other midfielders such as Viktor Le, Cong Phuong, Xuan Bac... to have more motivation to strive.

Confidence is high

Another addition to the 2025 AFC U23 Championship squad is striker Nguyen Thanh Nhan. A last-minute injury kept him out of the tournament in Indonesia. Now, he has returned to bolster the attack of coach Kim Sang-sik's team.

U.23 Vietnam is more confident after winning the 2025 U.23 Southeast Asian Championship

Photo: Dong Nguyen Khang

In addition, like the case of Tran Thanh Trung in midfield, the appearance of Nguyen Thanh Nhan in the forward line helps increase competition in this area, urging Dinh Bac, Quoc Viet, and Ngoc My to make more efforts to gain a regular place in coach Kim Sang-sik's squad.

In addition to personnel issues, the spirit of the Vietnam U.23 team is also completely different from before the team participated in the 2025 U.23 Asian Cup. The players now have considerable confidence, they believe in their ability to succeed, before having a better performance, since returning home with the regional youth tournament championship.

For example, goalkeeper Tran Trung Kien seems to have reached a new level, he is more confident and mature. He believes that he is now strong enough to compete with any striker in the V-League. Tran Trung Kien has even been considered to officially wear the national team jersey, in some matches against Nepal and Laos in the Asian Cup qualifiers, taking place later this year, and is no longer just a goalkeeper in youth tournaments, only for the youth team.

The same is true for midfielder Hieu Minh and midfielder Xuan Bac, who have played for the first time in the V-League, in the PVF-CAND club jersey. After appearing in the highest level of competition in the past rounds, these players will certainly grow significantly in terms of character.

The Vietnam U.23 team is ready to conquer the 2026 U.23 Asian qualifiers. We possess many factors that make our opponents in Group C of the continental qualifiers fear us.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/fifa-co-dong-thai-dac-biet-giup-hlv-kim-sang-sik-u23-viet-nam-bung-lua-o-chau-a-185250826161733318.htm