Before embarking on the journey to defend the title at the 2025 Southeast Asian U23, head coach Kim Sang-sik had a remarkable sharing about the two opponents of U23 Vietnam, U23 Thailand and U23 Indonesia.
The homepage of the Southeast Asian Football Federation (AFF) quoted Mr. Kim Sang-sik: U23 Thailand has a very good technical playing style and organization system, while U23 Indonesia stands out with their fledged physique and formidable speed.
These are all top teams in the region and always make the matches tense. U23 Vietnam needs to prepare carefully if they want to go far".
After completing the national team training session during the FIFA Days in June, coach Kim Sang-sik will focus all his attention on the campaign with U23 Vietnam in the 2025 U23 Southeast Asian Cup finals taking place in Indonesia next July, and then the 2026 U23 Asian Cup qualifiers at home in September.
In this tournament, U23 Vietnam is in Group B with U23 Laos and U23 Cambodia. As the defending champion, U23 Vietnam is receiving high expectations.
However, the Korean strategist does not focus on immediate achievements but wants young players to take advantage of the tournament as a stepping stone for development: Instead of being pressured by expectations of defending the title, we want each match to be an opportunity to improve.
This is an ideal playground for assessing individual abilities, testing tactics and creating conditions for players to accumulate international experience".
He also hopes that young faces who have participated in the national team such as Nguyen Thai Son or Pham Ly Duc will be the leaders of U23 Vietnam in this tournament: "I highly appreciate Thai Son and Ly Duc. They have potential and I believe both will make a big contribution to the upcoming campaign."
To best prepare for the tournament in Indonesia, U23 Vietnam will gather in Ba Ria - Vung Tau from June 26 to July 13, before moving to Indonesia. The team's opening match in Group B will be against U23 Laos on July 19.
