A top striker
Rafaelson may be the top scorer in the V.League in the last 3 seasons. But going back to the past, when the V.League started its first decade of transformation, one of the naturalized legends was Huynh Kesley Alves.
The veteran striker who was once associated with Vietnamese professional football has gone through a journey that Rafaelson himself aspires to at the present time.
In 2004, fate brought Kesley to Vietnam to participate in the BTV friendly tournament with Matsubara Club (Brazil). He excellently won the title of Top Scorer and Best Player. Of course, Binh Duong could not ignore this potential face.
The team from the land of Thu quickly signed a contract with Kesley. And in the first season, the Brazilian striker became the top scorer of V.League 2005 with 21 goals, and also won the title of Best Foreign Player of the tournament.
After moving to play for Hoang Anh Gia Lai in the unsuccessful 2006 season, Kesley returned to Binh Duong and contributed greatly to helping the team win the V.League championship for 2 consecutive years.
Throughout the period from 2004 to the most recent season playing in V.League for Binh Duong in 2022, Huynh Kesley played more than 200 matches in the national championship, with the number of goals around 150 goals.
Previously, in 2009, after 5 years of fighting in the V.League, this famous striker was granted Vietnamese citizenship. Everything went smoothly when Kesley was selected by coach Henrique Calisto to join the Vietnamese national team and debuted in a friendly match against Kuwait.
Let's not talk about how Kesley joined the Vietnam national team, just listening to Kesley share about his desire to become a naturalized citizen and play for the Vietnam national team is enough to be touching.
At that time, he confided: “After three years of being a Vietnamese son-in-law and having lived in Vietnam for a long time, I have enough conditions to become a naturalized citizen and wish to become a Vietnamese player. Only then will I have the opportunity to wear the Vietnamese national team jersey that I have always dreamed of.
Phan Van Santos and I, the first person to be naturalized to join the Vietnamese national team, are very different. Santos gave up his Brazilian citizenship to become a Vietnamese citizen, while I chose Vietnam as my second nationality.
Because I have a Vietnamese wife and have lived in Vietnam for a long time, I am considered for special status to have a second nationality. That means I will become a Vietnamese citizen, but I will not give up my original nationality.
Unfinished with Vietnam team
Back when he joined the Vietnam national team in 2009, Huynh Kesley suffered an injury to his right foot before joining the team.
He shared on the Vietnam Football Federation homepage: “Before, I sometimes felt a sharp pain in my right foot when practicing or competing, but now I don’t feel anything anymore. Every day with the Vietnam national team brings me a lot of joy and happiness. Here, in my first time wearing the Vietnam national team jersey, I have the opportunity to make many new friends.”
The naturalized player born in 1981 continued: “I got to train with Viet Thang, a very good striker. I am really happy to be paired with him. Coach Calisto cares about me, creating conditions for Viet Thang and I to coordinate well.
On the Vietnam national team, it will be different from Binh Duong club. I understand that I am just an option. The arrangement of which players to play on the field belongs to the head coach, not me. My task is to do my best on the training ground."
In the friendly match with Kuwait, the Vietnamese team won 1-0. The only goal was contributed by Huynh Kesley after a combination with Vu Phong and Trong Hoang.
Kesley had a memorable match for the Vietnam national team. Unfortunately, that was also the only time this player played for the “Golden Star Warriors”.
Later, Huynh Kesley still remembers that one time. In 2011, 2 years after playing for the national team, this striker still wished to play once in the red and yellow shirt.
He once shared: “In 2008, when I agreed to become a Vietnamese citizen in 2008, I wanted to contribute more to my second homeland. I hope that my personal titles will help me have the opportunity to wear the Vietnamese national team jersey once more.”
Unfortunately, at present, at over 40 years old, Huynh Kesley still cannot play for the Vietnam national team for the second time...
Huynh Kesley Alves still maintains stable performance and plays professionally at the age of 43. In the 2023 season, he played impressively to help Dinh Huong Phu Nhuan club win a place to play in the National Second Division.
After that, this naturalized striker continued to move to the Ho Chi Minh City Youth team and made a great contribution to help this team participate in the National First Division 2024-2025.
