During the training session of the Vietnam national team and Vietnam U.23 team for friendly matches in June, coach Philippe Troussier summoned a notable face, midfielder Nguyen An Khanh (Andrej Nguyen), who is currently playing for U.19 Sigma Olomouc in the Czech Republic.
An Khanh was born in the Czech Republic, with both parents being Vietnamese. An Khanh's preferred playing position is central midfielder, with an attacking orientation, and he can also play well as a striker or left winger. With his versatility, An Khanh is a regular starter for U.19 Sigma Olomouc and has been a regular on the club's B team playing in the Czech Republic's first division. An Khanh has also recently been called up to the Czech Republic's U.18 team.
Nguyen An Khanh
Nguyen An Khanh in the U.19 Sigma Olomouc shirt
When asked about Nguyen An Khanh's case, Coach Troussier affirmed that this player is a "point" case for everyone to look at and evaluate. If An Khanh plays well, this could be a fulcrum for the policy on overseas Vietnamese players to be more flexible. According to the French coach, making good use of overseas Vietnamese resources is a way to improve Vietnamese football in general and the Vietnamese national team in particular.
Mr. Troussier shared: "For me, we have to do a lot to upgrade the strength of national teams such as the Vietnam team, U.23 or U.20 Vietnam. To upgrade the strength of the Vietnam team, training alone is not enough. The first method needed is the Vietnamese football system such as V-League, the first division needs to be complete, continuous and have more matches, possibly extending to 40, 50 matches per season. Whether the Vietnam team is successful or not depends on the club.
The second method is the source of overseas Vietnamese players. I have experience coaching teams in Africa. In my opinion, the success of the teams here in recent times is thanks to the source of "African overseas" players returning to Europe, they are trained and compete continuously here. That is the reason why the strength of African teams has been raised rapidly.
In Southeast Asia, football countries such as Thailand, Indonesia, and Malaysia are doing a great job of welcoming players of foreign origin to the national team. Vietnam does not have many such players. According to my list based on what scouts provide, there are 20 players of Vietnamese origin residing and playing in many places such as Korea, Japan, Russia, France, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, etc. We will try to approach overseas Vietnamese players.
Van Lam is a typical successful case of an overseas Vietnamese player in the Vietnamese national team.
The case of player Nguyen An Khanh is very easy, because he has a passport and Vietnamese nationality. My job is to talk and discuss with his parents and him personally and then make a decision to call him up. Hopefully in the future there will be more overseas Vietnamese players to supplement the team. This is a "key" case so that the policy on overseas Vietnamese players can be more flexible."
The Vietnam national team and Vietnam U.23 team will gather for about 2 weeks. The match against the Hong Kong team on June 15 at Lach Tray Stadium (Hai Phong) will be Mr. Troussier's debut as head coach of the Vietnam national team. According to the French strategist, he expects his students to show the first signs of the playing style proposed by the coaching staff.
"The Vietnamese team only had a full squad for about 3 or 4 days before the friendly match with Hong Kong. Therefore, I tried to set up the players to play the basic lines according to what I wanted. With what I experienced with the U.23 at the 32nd SEA Games, I told the players that besides winning, we also have to consider how to win. They have to play collectively, connecting the lines both with and without the ball. They have to play with determination and passion. During this time, we will try our best," said Mr. Troussier.
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