This letter was written when the aftertaste of the victories of youth football is still spreading. Watching you fight your best, watching the radiant smiles when you win, watching the dream of the youth World Cup being realized, the observers cannot help but be proud. But, amidst the praises, we want to send you a different, quieter perspective, on the path from a "promising star" to real "World Cup warriors".
Success at the youth level is sometimes a sweet trap. It is easy to make people mistakenly believe that talent is enough. But modern football, especially at the adult World Cup level, does not only need feet that know how to play football. It requires harshness to the point of cruelty.
World Cup class is not just about practicing skills, learning and practicing tactics, but also how you treat your body every day. Yes, the common dream starts from you, to know how to choose a scientific meal, know how to go to bed on time, know how to keep yourself from temptations. If the national team wants to reach out, each individual in it must be a persistent element, with iron will and a solid foundational culture.
Hopefully in the future, you will not only know how to play football well, have sharp tactical thinking but also professional standards in mindset and attitude. Don't let fleeting glory obscure your eyes and fall into a state of early blooming and late fading. Remember that youth football is just the first bricks, and to build a tower rising to world class, you need the perseverance of the craftsman and the sophistication of the artists.
Older generations have not yet reached the World Cup dream and remember, you will also become "older generations" in the future for future generations to look at. The road ahead is still full of hardships, with both bitter failures and times of self-doubt. Just be confident. The World Cup is not a phantom dream if we - you and the national football - start building from the smallest positive habits, with humility and burning aspiration.
See you at the biggest playground on the planet, where the Vietnamese national anthem is sung proudly.
