Coach Guglielmo Arena of Laos U23 assessed that Vietnam U23 possesses many quality players, so the opening match of the team from the land of a million elephants will face many difficulties. The homepage of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) also has an article about the 2023 Southeast Asian U23 tournament.
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| Players of the Vietnam U23 team travel to the 2023 Southeast Asian U23 competition venue. (Source: VFF) |
* In the opening match of the 2023 Southeast Asian U23 tournament, U23 Laos will meet defending champion U23 Vietnam. The match will take place at 4:00 p.m. on August 20. Before this confrontation, coach Guglielmo Arena was very cautious.
Coach Guglielmo Arena said: "Previously, I was lucky to have the opportunity to visit the PVF Youth Football Training Center in Vietnam, so I know the quality of young Vietnamese players.
The upcoming match against U23 Vietnam will be very difficult for U23 Laos.
We respect all opponents, including U23 Vietnam. This tournament is an opportunity for young players from Southeast Asia to compete and gain experience."
Regarding Laos U23's preparation for the 2023 Southeast Asian U23 tournament, coach Guglielmo Arena emphasized: "We have about a month to prepare.
The team also had some test matches during the training trip before the tournament. Overall, the players are ready for the opening match against U23 Vietnam."
Meanwhile, coach Rob Gier of the U23 Philippines affirmed that his team, which is mainly made up of U21 players, participated in the tournament with a spirit of learning.
"The Philippines U23 team does not have enough players and does not have the best players. Most of our squad is made up of U21 players or younger. We also encountered many difficulties during the preparation process.
Meanwhile, U23 Vietnam is the defending champion, while U23 Laos has made rapid progress recently. U23 Philippines will face difficulties, so the players must try their best," affirmed coach Rob Gier.
For his part, coach Hoang Anh Tuan said: "We have two weeks to prepare, but in fact the national championships are still continuing to compete, so the only day the team has all its members is on August 13.
This was also the only day we trained with full strength. In the last friendly match against U23 Bahrain, we only lost on penalties.
Every opponent is the same, we come here with the utmost respect and play our best."
On the morning of August 17, the tournament organizing committee held a technical meeting with the participation of representatives of the participating teams to disseminate the regulations of the charter, register competition uniforms and check the qualifications of the players.
Because U23 Vietnam will play its first match on August 20, coach Hoang Anh Tuan made the final decision on the official list of 23 players participating in the 2023 Southeast Asian U23 Championship the day before.
* Southeast Asian teams are preparing to enter the regional tournament, which is also the beginning of the journey towards the U23 Asian tournament.
Asian football circles implicitly understand that the U23 Southeast Asian tournament, which begins today (August 17) in Rayong (Thailand), will be a warm-up for Southeast Asian teams for the U23 Asia tournament.
The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) website wrote: "Teams participating in the Southeast Asian U23 tournament are not only pursuing regional glory, but also using this tournament to prepare for the Asian U23 qualifying round, scheduled to begin on September 6."
Previously, most of the teams participating in the U23 Southeast Asian tournament this year revealed their plans to prepare for the U23 Asian qualifiers, using the regional tournament as a place to gain experience for young players and discover new talent before participating in the U23 Asian qualifiers.
AFC continued to share about the strength of the strongest teams in this year's U23 Southeast Asian tournament: "In Group A, Thailand coach Issara Sritaro put his faith in the new squad, with only 3 players remaining from SEA Games 32."
AFC added: "Thailand U23 star striker Suphanat Mueanta, who has just joined Belgian professional team OH Leuven, has not been called up for the Southeast Asian U23 tournament."
Apart from host Thailand, the remaining candidates for the championship include Indonesia, Malaysia and U23 Vietnam. Of course, AFC cannot ignore these teams.
The Asian Football Confederation's homepage analyzed: "In Group B, two long-time football rivals Indonesia and Malaysia will compete for a place in the semi-finals. Indonesia is led by Korean coach Shin Tae Yong."
"This coach kept 10 players who played at SEA Games 32, but did not call players who are playing abroad to the team.
Meanwhile, Malaysia, under the leadership of coach Elavarasan, aims to reach the final," are still the lines written on the AFC website.
Of course, the Asian Football Confederation cannot ignore the Vietnam U23 team when writing about the Southeast Asian tournament.
AFC commented: "The reigning champion U23 Vietnam is in Group C with the Philippines and Laos. The decision of VFF to send the U20 team to the U23 tournament makes the group of U23 Vietnam very unpredictable."
AFC affirmed: "Coach Hoang Anh Tuan will lead a team that he is very familiar with, those who have worked with him in the U17 and U20 teams before."
According to the rules, the top 3 teams in the 3 groups at this year's U23 Southeast Asia will qualify for the semi-finals. The remaining semi-final spot will belong to the second-placed team with the best record.
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