In the latest press conference about the Vietnam National Team's preparation for the ASEAN Cup 2024, coach Kim Sang-sik mentioned a limitation in the V.League. This affects the national team's strength in tournaments in the near future.
He said: “Through following the V.League, I know the current situation of Vietnamese football. That is, very few young players under the age of U23 have the opportunity to play for their home clubs. In my opinion, teams need to boldly give more opportunities to young players, especially those who have international experience from national teams such as U20 and U23. From there, the Vietnamese team will be provided with a force that is both young and experienced in top-level competition.”
Five months of working in Vietnam was enough for Mr. Kim Sang-sik to reflect on the current strength of the Vietnam National Team. “Young players have physical strength but little experience in V.League and international competition. On the contrary, older players have experience but have physical problems,” the Korean coach argued. However, the assessment that players aged 23 and under have few opportunities to play in the V.League is not necessarily correct.
Looking back at the last 5 rounds of V.League, there were more than 30 players aged 23 and under who were continuously on the field in the early stages of the season. In this criterion, Song Lam Nghe An had up to 10 young players used regularly. In Binh Duong, coach Hoang Anh Tuan trusted Vo Minh Trong, Vo Hoang Minh Khoa, Bui Vi Hao or Nguyen Tran Viet Cuong. Other clubs such as Da Nang, Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi Police, Hanoi FC, Thanh Hoa used 1-3 young players continuously in the past time.
But despite meeting the quantity requirement, these young players have not shown any signs of quality. On the offensive front, Khuat Van Khang, Nguyen Thai Son, Minh Khoa, Viet Cuong and Tuan Tai are the rare players who have scored in the V.League. In terms of defense, except for goalkeeper Tran Trung Kien who has played quite prominently for Hoang Anh Gia Lai, most of the other players have not made enough of a leap forward to attract the attention of fans.
It is worth mentioning that Song Lam Nghe An - the team that uses the most young players - is currently at the bottom of the V.League rankings. Lack of experience in many areas is the problem that makes the Vinh team run out of steam early in the long-distance race of the season. The two "teenage" talents that were expected by Song Lam Nghe An, Nguyen Quang Vinh and Le Dinh Long Vu, have fluctuated in form and have not had the breakthrough as expected.
Struggling to find new young players, coach Kim Sang-sik also has a headache when the U23 talents who have been planned for the national team for the past year have not been effective at the club level. Bui Vi Hao played very well in some friendly matches of the Vietnam team, but when he returned to Binh Duong, he could not prove the trust of coach Hoang Anh Tuan. Although Tuan Tai and Van Khang scored in the national tournament, it does not mean that they created importance in the way The Cong Viettel played in the recent period.
The same story is happening at the Hanoi Police Club or Hanoi FC. Nguyen Van Truong, Nguyen Van Tung (Hanoi) or Nguyen Dinh Bac, Le Van Do (Hanoi Police) were all given the opportunity to play for their home teams, but they wasted their opportunities and luck.
After all, the lack of young players in the Vietnamese team is not necessarily the fault of the clubs in the V.League. The lack of young players and their lack of resilience is also part of the reason why the national team is in such a difficult period.
