Southeast Asia has a population of more than 600 million people, accounting for nearly 1/10 of the world's population. However, the football level of the region is generally low compared to other places in Asia, especially in Northeast Asia, where the national championships of Korea and Japan are much better in terms of stature and quality.
Attractive destinations in Korea and Japan
To develop themselves, Vietnamese players in particular and Southeast Asian players in general have been very active in finding clubs outside the region to join. Goalkeeper Dang Van Lam of the Vietnam team decided to choose Cerezo Osaka in Japan because he considered this a "big step forward in his career".
The goalkeeper born in 1993 has affirmed his talent in the Vietnam national team jersey, as well as the Muangthong United team. Therefore, he is confident that he will compete for a position at Cerezo Osaka - the 4th place team of J.League 2020.
In parallel with Van Lam, young defender Asnawi (21 years old) was also invited to play by the Korean second division club Ansan Greeners with a long-term commitment. The Korean team highly appreciates the skills, spirit and will of this young defender.
Both Asnawi and Dang Van Lam had a meaningful challenge. Asnawi is the first player in Southeast Asia to be recognized for his defensive ability against K.League teams. Although he is young, he has a strong will to step up to the big stage. Dang Van Lam also knocked on the door of Japan's J.League, leaving behind success in Southeast Asia. They found meaningful challenges in Japan and Korea, where there are national championships that are considered the best in Asia, commented Koreas News1.
Before these two players, some Thai players performed very well in Japan. For example, Theerathon Bunmathan won the J.League with Yokohama F.Marinos; Chanathip Songkrasin became an excellent midfielder in the J.League.
In the K.League, Xuan Truong and Cong Phuong have played here for nearly 3 seasons. Although they did not play much, the effect they created forced the K.League to open more quotas to attract Southeast Asian players, starting from the 2020 season.
Europe and other destinations
Japan and Korea are only 2 of the destinations chosen by Southeast Asian teams and players. On February 5, Malaysia's strongest team Johor Darul Ta'zim sent two players, Liridon Krasniqi (Malaysia) and Syahrian (Indonesia) to Newcastle Jets (Australia) on a long-term loan. Johor's leadership hopes that both will make new strides when competing in a national championship with higher quality and competitiveness than the Malaysian tournament.
Small and mid-range clubs in Europe are also targeted for Southeast Asian countries to send young players. Indonesian striker Bagus Kaffi arrived at FC Utrecht (Netherlands) with a 1-year contract, with an additional 2-year extension clause. In the Netherlands, Bagus will play from the U18 team, looking for opportunities to step into the Jong FC Utrecht team before reaching the first team.
In addition to Bagus Kaffi, Indonesian football has 2 players currently studying in Europe, including Witan Sulaeman (Radnik Surdulica, Serbia) and Egy Maulana Vikri of Lechia Gdansk (Poland). They are expected to be an important factor for the Indonesian team in the future.
Meanwhile, Malaysia, through billionaire Vincent Tan, has brought their brightest young talent Luqman Hakim to play for KV Kortrijk (belgium) for 5 years, since the end of 2020. This striker will likely be called up to the Malaysia national team to prepare for the matches in the 2022 World Cup qualifiers this year.
When he was playing for Muangthong United, "Messi Thailand" Chanathip was valued at around 600,000 Euros. However, when he went to Japan to wear the Consodale Sapporo shirt since 2017, his price increased rapidly, thanks to his regular appearance and many contributions. At his best, Chanathip was valued at 2.4 million Euros, but now, he is valued at 1.7 million Euros. That shows that competing and affirming their position outside Southeast Asia is very beneficial for the players.
