U17 Australia - how strong is Vietnam's opponent?

U17 Australia is a tough opponent for U17 Vietnam in the opening match of the 2025 AFC U17 Championship - Photo: AFC

At the 2025 AFC U17 Championship, Vietnam U17 is in Group B with Japan, Australia and UAE. According to experts, Japan U17 is the leading candidate for a ticket to the next round in Group B thanks to its superior level compared to the other teams in the group.

The remaining spot in the quarterfinals will be competed for by three teams: Vietnam, UAE and Australia. In which, U17 Australia is the first opponent of Vietnam and this will be a decisive match for the goals of both teams.

The young team of the kangaroo country owns quality young players. Among them are 2 potential stars playing abroad: Alexander Garbowski (BK Häcken, Sweden) and Max Anastasio (Venezia, Italy)... The remaining players mostly come from the youth teams of clubs competing in the Australian Championship (A-League).

The name that U17 Vietnam also needs to pay attention to is Anthony Didulica. The striker born in 2008 is playing for West Ham United and has impressed with his "notorious" goal-scoring ability.

In the U17 Asian qualifiers, Didulica also scored 5 goals and is expected to lead the home team's attack. Not only that, U17 Australia showed great determination in the 2025 U17 Asian Cup when setting the goal of achieving high results. Along with that is the relatively thorough preparation before the tournament.

Last February, the Australian U17s participated in the Hattrick U17 International Tournament in the UAE to gain experience. In three matches at the tournament, the Australian U17s made a strong impression when they beat South Korea 2-1, defeated Saudi Arabia 4-0, and drew 1-1 with Oman. Although this was only a friendly tournament with a test nature, the Australian U17s still showed some of their strength.

Australia U17 team sets high goals at 2025 AFC U17 Championship - Photo: AFC

With what they have shown, U17 Australia has shown that they are a team that focuses on physical strength and power. However, a few players on the attack line possess very good individual skills, helping U17 Australia's playing style become diverse and extremely unpredictable.

In addition, in the past matches, U17 Australia played at high speed, approached quickly and took full advantage of their physical advantages. Especially the ability to switch from defense to attack very quickly - something that U17 Vietnam must pay attention to if they want to win against their opponents from the land of kangaroos.

Although considered a strong team, U17 Australia has not shown stability. The U17 Australia defense is not really solid. If exploited well, U17 Vietnam will have a chance to achieve good results. The tall defense of U17 Australia is quite slow and is very afraid of high-speed balls. Meanwhile, U17 Vietnam has many players with impressive technique and speed.

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Source: https://tuoitre.vn/u17-uc-doi-thu-cua-tuyen-viet-nam-manh-co-nao-2025040410260714.htm