The 2025 National Volleyball Championship has the surprise appearance of coach Lee Young-taik - who is leading the GS Caltex club at the Korean Volleyball Championship, also the team that middle blocker Bich Thuy played for in the previous phase.
Mr. Lee Young-taik attended many matches and had an overview of the expertise, quality of the tournament as well as the performances of some outstanding players.
Talking to Lao Dong, the Korean strategist said: "I heard Thanh Thuy is a very good player, so during her time in Vietnam, I wanted to come see her compete. In the last match, I watched Thuy play football directly.
After the match ended, I went down to the field to congratulate and congratulate Thanh Thuy, she had a hard time."
Not only Thanh Thuy, but before that, Mr. Lee Young-taik also watched the matches of Duc Giang Chemicals or LPB Ninh Binh, where Bich Thuy and Bich Tuyen were competing.
Overall assessment of the Vietnam National Volleyball Championship, this coach said: "In general, I still see that the Korean tournament is at a higher level than the Vietnamese tournament, if we consider foreign players and domestic players. I see that Korea's level is still a little better.
Currently, I can't say for sure, but through what I feel, the Vietnam national championship is about 60-70% compared to Korea".
During this trip to Vietnam, 3 outstanding players caught the eye of coach Lee Young-taik: middle blocker Bich Thuy, opposite Bich Tuyen and main blocker Thanh Thuy.
"Bich Thuy played in the Korean national championship, she is a very competitive player. I also highly appreciate Bich Tuyen and Thanh Thuy through their performances in recent matches.
I think Bich Tuyen and Thanh Thuy are capable of going to Korea to compete. And if they have the opportunity to go abroad (not just Korea), they will definitely be highly competitive."
Regarding his individual foreign player selection criteria for the Korean volleyball tournament, Mr. Lee Young-taik said: "Regarding Asian players, I focus on the positions that the team is lacking and will consider choosing. As for foreign players, I will consider based on height, strength and finishing ability.
Finally, I hope that Vietnamese players will boldly try their hand in the Korean volleyball environment. I hope to see more try-outs before the new season starts, or maybe the next seasons."
