Coach Cristiano Roland has worked in Vietnam for a long time, so how do you assess the current youth training system of Vietnamese football?
Coach Cristiano Roland: I have known and experienced many different youth training systems in Vietnam. I think it is still a problem related to long-term investment.
In Vietnam, not all clubs have enough facilities as well as the best environment for young players to develop.
The recent positive results of U17 Vietnam are also a signal for investors to pay more attention and have clearer investment.
So according to you, what does Vietnamese youth football need to change or invest in to create many high-quality players in the future?
When we participate in tournaments like in Saudi Arabia or countries with stronger investment in football, we see many differences.
First is the facilities, for example, training grounds. Fields in Saudi Arabia or other countries are of much better quality. This directly affects the speed of the ball as well as the intensity of the players' competition.
This is one of the difficulties when the team goes abroad to play, it always takes time to adapt to the speed of the ball and the intensity of the match.
The training system also lacks many things, for example, fitness trainers or nutrition experts.
This is very important when young players need to be cared for and invested in more clearly in terms of nutrition to be able to develop their physique and fitness.
Looking at strong football backgrounds in Asia such as Korea or Japan, it can be seen that they have a synchronous training system from clubs to youth teams. So, according to you, what does Vietnamese football need to do to build such a close connection?
These are also very positive examples in the region. We also had experiences when competing with universities in Japan. It can be seen that in their training system, players after competing in university tournaments will be selected for higher tournaments.
We still touch on one thing, which is investment. It is clear that young players have proven that they deserve to have the trust of fans as well as better investment. And who knows, in the near future, we may come to the World Cup with a men's football team.
After the success at the 2026 AFC U17 Championship, what do you expect from this generation of players in the coming years, especially their ability to contribute to the national team?
The players of U17 Vietnam still have a very long journey with many difficulties to overcome.
Of course, I always have faith in you, I hope you will continue to try to practice and overcome the upcoming difficulties to be able to contribute to the national team.
