Earlier this week, Vietnamese fans witnessed the national men's football team's 1-2 defeat to Thailand in the LPBank Cup 2024 friendly tournament. Winning matches against Thailand have long been a luxury, so losing is a familiar feeling, but the match at My Dinh Stadium brought a more "painful" feeling, when the opponent brought many young players, who had never even played for the national team.
And while the young stars of Thailand are playing with confidence, the players of the same generation in Vietnamese football have left almost no mark. The consequences, perhaps, need not be explained further. Just ask once more, which domestic playground is for the U23 players?
The reality of young Vietnamese players has been constantly discussed since former coach Philippe Troussier took a strong stance on rejuvenating the national team. Over the past year, matches - both of the national team and the U23, U22 teams from the region and continent or friendly matches - have exposed all the problems in the way Vietnamese football is run.
And while we haven’t seen any action yet, the Thais have already gone ahead. In the middle of this month, the Thai U23 League officially kicked off its first season. The main goal is to promote the development of young domestic footballers by providing them with a competitive environment, gaining experience and demonstrating their abilities.
Notably, the league does not feature foreign players, focusing solely on nurturing local talent. This is the vision of the Football Association of Thailand, not only to allow young talent to make a name for themselves, but also for players who are not playing regularly in the club’s first team, as well as players recovering from injuries, to maintain fitness and competitiveness.
In Vietnamese football, U tournaments often take place in a short period of time, so from the U21 to U23 age group, there is a break in tournaments and opportunities to accumulate top-level experience after basic experience. As a result, the national team lacks inheritance and continuity...
If I'm not fast, someone else will be fast. If I don't do it, someone else will. That's it!
