U23 Vietnam and the issue of youth training academies

At the 2018 AFC U23 Championship, the Vietnam U23 team was almost entirely composed of players from two key clubs: Hanoi FC and HAGL. Even now, many players from that 2018 U23 generation remain core members of the national team, such as Duy Manh, Xuan Manh, and Quang Hai.

Eight years later, the situation has completely changed, as Hanoi FC no longer has any key players in the Vietnam U23 squad. Although defenders Duc Anh and Van Ha were included in the official 23-player roster, they only appeared as late substitutes in the final minutes.

The most notable Hanoi FC star in the Vietnam U23 team, captain Van Truong, missed both SEA Games 33 and the 2026 AFC U23 Championship due to a serious injury sustained during the Panda Cup in China at the end of 2025.

Meanwhile, HAGL’s situation is not much better, with only one genuine homegrown player, goalkeeper Trung Kien. Other players like Quoc Viet, Quoc Cuong, Ly Duc, and Nhat Minh actually developed through the Nutifood JMG Academy.

Replacing the key roles of Hanoi FC and HAGL in the current Vietnam U23 team is PVF, which contributes a large number of players including Hieu Minh, Xuan Bac, Anh Quan, Thanh Nhan, and even Le Phat, who once belonged to PVF but now plays for Ninh Binh club.

The rise of the PVF academy is not surprising, as in the last three National U21 Championships, PVF won twice in 2023 and 2025 and finished runner-up in 2024. Similarly, PVF’s impressive record in other youth national tournaments like U19, U17, U15, and U13 explains why PVF players now hold such important roles in the Vietnam U23 team.

PVF’s strong emergence has left once-renowned youth academies like Hanoi FC and HAGL contributing very modestly to the Vietnam U23 team’s personnel. This also forecasts a bleak future for Hanoi FC and HAGL in the V-League, as the succession crisis in their squads becomes increasingly apparent.

In fact, this is not just a future concern; the recent performances of Hanoi FC and HAGL in the V-League over the past few seasons have already revealed the situation. Hanoi FC has struggled to regain its former glory, caught in a cycle of frequent changes and dismissals of head coaches and foreign players, while HAGL has repeatedly fought relegation battles, often only escaping danger in the final rounds.

Therefore, it would be surprising if these two clubs still contributed a large number of players to the Vietnam U23 team. It is no shock that their personnel now play relatively minor roles in the U23 squad.

Overall, this is not a positive sign for Vietnamese football, as it would be ideal if PVF rose to the top of the national youth academy rankings while Hanoi FC and HAGL maintained their strong positions, rather than falling into the decline they currently face.