Opening the door to talent
Thomas Mai Veeren (Mai Cong Thanh) is the latest overseas Vietnamese player to appear at U17 Vietnam. This young striker has returned to the country from the Netherlands to join his teammates according to the call-up decision of coach Cristiano Roland. Although he was quite interested in the playing skills of the Vietnamese-Netherlands player through videos on YouTube, Mr. Roland still wanted to directly "watch the pig" of this versatile midfielder on the pitch. Thomas Mai Veeren is the second overseas Vietnamese player to appear at U17 Vietnam in just half a year, under the tenure of coach Cristiano Roland.
Previously, in the campaign towards the 2025 U17 Asian qualifiers, U17 Vietnam gave Maxwell James Peereboom - a central defender currently developing in Australia - a trial opportunity. He expressed his admiration for his teammates' playing skills and affirmed that he learned many things through his time training with the team.
A year ago, in the U22 Vietnam team, Andrej Nguyen An Khanh was contacted by coach Philippe Troussier's team and invited to try out. The player born in the Czech Republic is initially getting used to the national youth team environment. That is something that An Khanh has not been able to do in Europe because of her modest level. Mr. Troussier personally introduced An Khanh to senior leaders of the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) in a cooperation program between the organization and the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) at that time.
It is a fact that, except for Nguyen Filip, Dang Van Lam or Mac Hong Quan who have contributed to the overall achievements of the Vietnamese national teams, most overseas Vietnamese players have not yet made a professional mark when returning to play for the national team. However, based on initial acquaintances and coordination, overseas Vietnamese players also see the potential, sincerity and openness of VFF's policies.
Persistently "cuyen ngua"
The strategy of welcoming young talents to "grow" has been applied in many developed football regions around the world. France, Germany, the UK, Japan or recently Thailand and Indonesia are all actively searching for and convincing overseas Vietnamese to return home to contribute.
For Vietnamese football, the fact that overseas Vietnamese players have not been successful in returning home to try out is already in the preliminary list. Importantly, after a period of development and progress, they prioritized wearing the Vietnam National Team jersey.
Andrej Nguyen An Khanh is a typical example. He failed to prove himself at U22 Vietnam more than a year ago. However, in recent months, the midfielder's level has been improved thanks to playing in different leagues in the Czech Republic. Accordingly, Andrej Nguyen An Khanh "shoots" the signal again, ready to try again with U22 Vietnam, despite rumors that the youth team in the Czech Republic is also interested in him.
In addition to the national team levels, VFF continues to create conditions for clubs to register 2 foreign-born Vietnamese players in the national professional tournament. The presence of Jason Quang Vinh (Hanoi Police), Colonna, Pierre Lamothe (Hanoi), Adou Minh, Viktor Le (Ha Tinh) in this season helps coach Kim Sang-sik expand the selection area for U22 and the Vietnam National Team in the coming time. Of course, the prerequisite is that they must have Vietnamese nationality and truly play well at their home team.
The strategy of recruiting overseas Vietnamese players that VFF has implemented in the past few years has been creating promising results. Maybe, the contribution of overseas Vietnamese players is not enough, but VFF has brought an important message in developing the resources of the Vietnam National Team, which is to be ready to open the door, giving opportunities for overseas Vietnamese to return home to contribute.
