Vietnam U23: Sleeping Giants or Youthful Illusions?

At Thong Nhat Stadium on a sweltering March evening, I sat in Stand B, where I could clearly see the entire tactical setup of Vietnam U23 in a friendly against Phu Dong Club. When the final whistle blew with a 2-1 scoreline favoring the visitors, I couldn't help but notice a detail most spectators missed: our young players ran a total of 112 km, 4 km more than their opponents, yet only managed 3 shots on target. I saw a crack in the football map, and it starts from the group stage. The context I'm referring to is the immense expectation placed on the current Vietnam U23 generation. After the success of the 2026 golden generation in Changzhou, Vietnamese fans have placed absolute trust in the next cohort. Football academies have sprung up like mushrooms, from PVF to Nutifood Academy, each year producing training contracts worth billions of dong. But the question no one dares to ask directly: are we overestimating the potential of these young players? Look at the data from Vietnam U23's last 10 matches. Average possession is 58%, but scoring efficiency is only 1.2 goals per game. This figure is significantly lower than the 2026 generation, which had a conversion rate of 18%. This is not coincidental. I have directly followed 6 of their matches this year, and I noticed a repeating pattern: young players move a lot, press very actively, but lack the ability to read situations in the final third. The sleeping giant I'm referring to is their defensive counter-attacking ability. In the match against Thailand U23 at the SEA U23 Championship, Vietnam U23 conceded from a counter-attack after just 3 passes. This shows an imbalance between attacking desire and defensive solidity. They are not weak; we just haven't been patient enough to hear them breathe. They are being forced to play a style of football they are not ready for, due to pressure from media and fans. I once had the opportunity to speak with a Ligue 1 scout who had watched Vietnam U23 at a friendly tournament in Qatar. He told me: 'Your players are very fast, very strong, but they play like machines. They lack creativity in tight spaces.' This comment reminded me of a term I often use in my analyses: being 'inferior' tactically. We are training players who can run endlessly, but we are not teaching them how to think like intelligent footballers. Compare this with their Japanese counterparts. While Vietnamese young players are often trained according to rigid curricula, Japanese players are encouraged to make their own decisions on the pitch. What's the result? At the most recent U23 Asian Championship, Japan had 12 players under 20 starting, while Vietnam had only 3. The difference lies not in fitness or technique, but in coaching philosophy. I could be wrong, and I hope I am. But based on what I have observed, I believe Vietnam U23 is caught between two worlds: one demanding immediate success to continue the legacy of the 2026 generation, and another where they need time to develop naturally. The only applause in the empty stadium is my heart breaking as I watch these young players run their hearts out without knowing what they are running for. When the stands are empty, I realize football has been lying to us with noise. We have become too accustomed to celebrating victories over weak opponents, forgetting that top-level football is not a game of enthusiasm, but a game of intelligence. Vietnam U23 needs a revolution in thinking, not a revolution in fitness. I will follow them throughout the upcoming U23 Asian qualifiers. And I have a verifiable prediction: if they maintain their current approach, they will pass the group stage but will fail in the quarterfinals against a better-organized team. That will not be a failure, but a necessary lesson. Because Morocco did not rewrite history; they just read it against the current - and sometimes, we need to reread our own history before writing a new chapter. Qatar's comeback is a mirror for me to reflect on the fear named 'expectation'. We can continue to praise victories over weak opponents, or we can start asking difficult questions. I choose difficult questions, because that is the only way for Vietnam U23 to truly become giants, rather than just youthful illusions. The biggest lesson I have learned after 10 years of following Vietnamese youth football is: we need patience. Not the patience of fans waiting for victory, but the patience of scientists waiting for experiment results. Let them make mistakes, let them learn, and most importantly, let them be themselves on the pitch. Only then can we truly be proud of the next generation of Vietnamese football.