U22 Vietnam and opportunities for overseas Vietnamese players

On June 20, coach Kim Sang-sik announced the list of 35 players for the 3rd/2025 training session of the Vietnam U22 team, preparing for the 2025 Southeast Asian U23 Championship. Among them, there are 2 overseas Vietnamese players, Vicktor Le and Bui Alex.

The list of U22 Vietnam's players this time is mostly familiar faces who have participated in the two most recent gatherings under the leadership of Acting Head Coach Dinh Hong Vinh.

In which, the first phase takes place at FIFA Days in March 2025, the team participates in the CFA Team China 2025 International Football Tournament held in Jiangsu, China with strong U22 opponents such as Uzbekistan, Korea and host China. The second phase takes place at FIFA Days in June 2025.

Coach Kim Sang-sik chose this time the appearance of 8 players who contributed to the 2023 Southeast Asian U23 Championship, including: goalkeeper Tran Trung Kien; defender Nguyen Hong Phuc; midfielders Nguyen Van Truong, Khuat Van Khang, Dinh Xuan Tien; and three strikers Nguyen Dang Duong, Le Dinh Long Vu and Nguyen Quoc Viet.

This list also includes two promising overseas Vietnamese players: midfielder Viktor Le (Hong Linh Ha Tinh Club) and striker Bui Alex (team B of Bohemians Praha 1905, playing in the Czech Republic Third Division).

Striker Bui Alex. Photo: VFF

Viktor Le is performing well in the V.League and has participated in recent training sessions. He has performed well in friendly matches and is highly appreciated for his technique, creativity and modern football thinking. Viktor Le has many opportunities to be included in the final list for the U23 Southeast Asian tournament and the 33rd SEA Games.

Meanwhile, Bui Alex just had his first try with U22 Vietnam in the gathering at the end of May and the beginning of June. This player himself also admitted: "I understand that I have to try harder in the coming time. This is only my first match in Vietnam and I believe that I will play better if I have more time."

“It is difficult to compare the football environment between the Czech Republic and Vietnam, because in the Czech Republic, I can easily talk to everyone. In Vietnam, I can still listen and understand most of what my teammates say, but I mainly have to communicate through Viktor Le because he speaks English and supports me in some situations.

This is also my second time in Vietnam. The traffic here gives me mixed emotions, but I really like life in Vietnam and really enjoy eating pho in Hanoi ,” said Bui Alex.

According to the plan, the Vietnam U22 team will gather again on June 26 in Ba Ria Vung Tau. The team will train here until July 14 before leaving for Indonesia to participate in the 2025 Southeast Asian U23 Championship, taking place from July 15 to 29. In the group stage, Vietnam will face Laos on July 19 and Cambodia on July 22. In the Southeast Asian U23 arena, the Vietnam U23 team has won the championship twice in a row in 2022 and 2023. This is one of three important tournaments for Vietnam U22 identified by the VFF in 2025.

The VFF President emphasized the importance of three major tournaments in the coming period, including the 2025 Southeast Asian U23 Championship, the 2026 Asian U23 Qualifiers and the 33rd SEA Games. These are also the three tournaments in which U22 Vietnam has achieved impressive results, including two championships at the Southeast Asian U23 tournament, one runner-up position at the continental U23 tournament and two consecutive gold medals at the SEA Games.

This is also an opportunity for overseas Vietnamese players like Viktor Le and Bui Alex to affirm their professional value to directly compete for official playing positions. In the context where Vietnamese football does not have many quality naturalized and overseas Vietnamese players like today, young players also need to show more to win opportunities.

Foreign referee to officiate the play-off match for a place in the V.League

On the afternoon of June 20, leaders of the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) and Vietnam Professional Football Joint Stock Company (VPF) met with the Southern press to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Vietnam Revolutionary Press Day.

Here, Mr. Nguyen Minh Ngoc - General Director of VPF shared some important information about the organization and operation of the final matches of the 2024-2025 season.

Of which, the play-off match for a ticket to V.League 2025-2026 is of great interest. This match will take place between the second-placed team of the First Division and the 13th-placed team of V.League.

In the First Division, the second ticket is a direct competition between Truong Tuoi Binh Phuoc and PVF-CAND. The two teams are separated by one point on the rankings. The final ranking of the First Division will be decided after the end of round 22, taking place at 4:00 p.m. on June 21.

Meanwhile, at LPBank V.League 2024-2025, the race to avoid direct relegation and having to participate in the Bia Sao Vang 2024-2025 Play-off is still undecided between Quy Nhon Binh Dinh, Da Nang and Quang Nam clubs. The final rankings will be available after round 26 ends. All 7 matches of round 26 of V.League will be played at 5:00 p.m. on June 22.

The play-off match is scheduled to take place at 6:00 p.m. on June 27. VPF has proposed two options for organizing the match. Option one, if a club from the Central region meets a club from the South, the match will take place at Thong Nhat Stadium (HCMC). If a club from the Central region meets a team from the North, the play-off match will take place at Vinh Stadium (Nghe An).

To ensure fairness for this match, VPF will invite two foreign referees to officiate. One will be the main referee and the other will be in charge of the VAR room.

HH

Source: https://cand.com.vn/the-thao/u22-viet-nam-va-co-hoi-cho-cau-thu-viet-kieu-i772279/