Vietnam U22 team aims for attacking style of play

The core of the current U22 Vietnam team is a combination of veteran players and "rookies" who have impressed in the domestic arena this season. Most of them are still the same faces who participated in the two gatherings during FIFA Days in March and June 2025.

Demonstrate quick integration

In addition to the high-quality training trip at the CFA Team China 2025 International Friendly Tournament held in Jiangsu - China, the U22 Vietnam players also had valuable training sessions and exchanges with their "seniors" of the national team recently.

Tuyển U22 Việt Nam hướng đến lối chơi tấn công - Ảnh 1. — U22 Vietnam has many promising young talents at the 2025 Southeast Asian U23 Tournament (Photo: VFF)

Under the guidance of coach Dinh Hong Vinh, the most prominent factors of the U22 Vietnam team gradually emerged, strong enough to shoulder the burden and replace the roles of the injured pillars who have not yet recovered. In addition to the experienced players who have played for the Vietnam team, "new recruits" such as Viktor Le, Bui Alex, Nguyen Ngoc My... also demonstrated quick integration, demonstrating professional skills that are not inferior to their peers.

Sharing about her first time wearing the U22 Vietnam team jersey, Ngoc My said: "It didn't take me too much time to adapt and get used to the training program as well as the playing philosophy of the coaching staff. The recent training sessions were very useful, helping the players accumulate physical strength, get used to the diagram, tactics, how to operate the game, coordinate attacks and support defense. Pressure in a fair competitive environment on the national team is inevitable, but the whole team is still focused on the goal of building a strong force before entering the tournament."

Building an attack strategy

Many experienced strikers are on the Vietnam U22 team preparing for the 2025 Southeast Asian U23 Championship, the 2026 Asian U23 qualifiers, and the 33rd SEA Games taking place at the end of this year. The common point of this group of players is their strong competitive spirit and experience in the V-League and the First Division last season.

Among the 35 U22 national team players summoned this time, Coach Kim called up 12 midfielders and 8 strikers, including young players with the best attacking style in the domestic league, such as: Nguyen Dinh Bac, Khuat Van Khang, Nguyen Van Truong, Nguyen Quoc Viet, Nguyen Cong Phuong, Nguyen Thanh Nhan, Dinh Xuan Tien or Nguyen Quang Vinh...

Notable among them is 18-year-old midfielder Le Van Thuan, who plays for Thanh Hoa Club and has just been voted the Best Young Player of V-League 2024-2025. This season, Van Thuan has made 15 appearances in the V-League, scoring 2 goals and 4 assists, playing an important role in the operation of the all-out attacking style, helping the Thanh team enter the top 8 of the final rankings.

Although he is quite young, Van Thuan has shown his maturity in playing, not being afraid or hesitant when facing veteran players. Commenting on himself, the Thanh Hoa midfielder said: "At the club, I have been trained and instructed under the dedicated guidance of two coaches, Popov and Tomislav. Enthusiasm and resilience when playing are my strengths. However, I also need to improve my physical strength, technique and mindset. I will try my best in every training session and strive to compete for a place in the U22 Vietnam squad to participate in the U23 Southeast Asian Championship. Being called up to the national team is a great opportunity for me to learn, gain experience and perfect my skills."

According to the plan, the U22 Vietnam team will continue training until July 12. During this time, Mr. Kim and his team will have 2 friendly matches with U23 Chinese Taipei. After that, U22 Vietnam will finalize the list of 23 players before moving to Indonesia on July 14. At the 2025 Southeast Asian U23 Championship, U22 Vietnam is in Group B, facing Laos on July 19 and Cambodia on July 22.