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Coach Kim Sang-sik was pleased when U23 Vietnam maintained a balance between offense and defense. Photo: Tam Minh . |
“Laos U23 defended very tightly from the start, but our players worked hard to make a difference. I am satisfied because the team controlled the game well and maintained stability in both attack and defense,” coach Kim Sang-sik shared after Vietnam U23’s victory over Laos U23 on July 19.
The 3-0 victory over U23 Laos in the opening match was a favorable start, helping U23 Vietnam create momentum for the journey to defend the championship title at the 2025 Southeast Asian U23 Championship. Coach Kim Sang-sik was satisfied with his players' performance, especially the balance between defense and attack.
When asked about potential opponents in the semi-finals, coach Kim Sang-sik was cautious: “Indonesia is very strong and well-organized. But right now, we are not thinking much about the semi-finals. The important thing is to focus on each match and follow the plan as planned.”
In this match, Khuat Van Khang opened the score in the 15th minute, before center-back Nguyen Hieu Minh scored a double in the 70th and 83rd minutes. This was the first time Hieu Minh scored at the national U23 level. "I am very happy with the first two goals for the team. This is the motivation for me to try harder in the next matches," said the center-back wearing the number 4 shirt.
On the other side of the front line, coach Ha Hyeok-jun acknowledged the difference in skill level between the two teams: “U23 Vietnam is very strong and has a well-developed system. We have tried and hope to improve in the upcoming tournaments”. The Korean coach also highly appreciated Vietnamese-American player Viktor Le of U23 Vietnam: “He has great potential to become a star of Vietnamese football in the future”.
According to coach Ha Hyeok-jun, the difficulty of Lao football is that the national championship is not yet developed, leading to a shortage of quality players. He affirmed that his team will continue to learn and make more efforts to shorten the gap with the leading football teams in the region such as Vietnam, Thailand or Indonesia.
With 3 points, U23 Vietnam has risen to the top of Group B. Coach Kim Sang-sik and his team will enter the final match of the group stage against U23 Cambodia on July 22. Meanwhile, with only 1 point after 2 matches, U23 Laos' chance to continue is only theoretical.
Source: https://znews.vn/hlv-kim-sang-sik-u23-viet-nam-thang-u23-lao-nho-su-on-dinh-post1569978.html
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