On the evening of December 30, the Vietnam U23 team had a closed friendly match with U23 Syria in Qatar. This is considered an important review step for both teams before entering the 2026 AFC U23 Championship finals.
With a general rehearsal nature, coach Kim Sang-sik launched an optimal squad, including many faces who made great contributions to the journey to win the SEA Games 33 gold medal.
In goal, goalkeeper Tran Trung Kien continued to be given opportunities. The defense consisted of the central defender trio Ly Duc, Hieu Minh and Nhat Minh. The midfield had the presence of Thai Son and Xuan Bac, while the two full-backs were Phi Hoang and Minh Phuc.
In attack, the trio Dinh Bac - Khuat Van Khang - Bui Vi Hao started from the beginning, bringing many expectations thanks to international competition experience.
In the first 15 minutes, the game took place balanced. U23 Vietnam proactively deployed the ball from their own half, trying to control the tempo and organize attacks in groups.
However, the opportunities created were not clear enough to convert into goals. In the 27th minute, coach Kim Sang-sik decided to take Dinh Bac off the field, bringing Le Van Thuan in to test the personnel plan further.
In the 40th minute, U23 Syria took advantage of an attacking situation to open the score with a goal from Mahmoud Mahna. Just a few minutes later, U23 Vietnam had a chance to equalize when Van Thuan had a close-range finish, but the ball went wide of the post in regret.
In the second half, the West Asian team continued to show effectiveness when substitute Osman increased the score to 2-0 in the 57th minute after a clear combination.
Faced with that situation, the U23 Vietnam coaching staff did not rush to change the game but proactively rotated the force. In the 62nd minute, up to 10 players were brought onto the field, except for Van Thuan who continued to play for the coach to monitor further. These adjustments helped the red shirt team improve the game in the final period.
In the 87th minute, U23 Vietnam's efforts were rewarded when Nguyen Le Phat scored to narrow the gap. Although he could not reverse the situation, the late goal made the match more noteworthy and brought more professional data to the coaching staff before finalizing the list for the tournament.
