Coach Dinh Hong Vinh: “Playing against strong opponents is a great opportunity for Vietnam U22”
On the afternoon of November 11 local time, acting head coach Dinh Hong Vinh attended the press conference ahead of the CFA Team China – Panda Cup 2025**, held in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China.
12/11/2025 09:54:33
At the start of the press conference, coach Dinh Hong Vinh, on behalf of the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) and the Vietnam U22 team, expressed gratitude to the Chinese Football Association (CFA) for their warm and attentive welcome of the entire delegation upon arriving in China for the tournament.
Commenting on the competitive level of the Panda Cup 2025, Coach Dinh Hong Vinh emphasized that it is a highly competitive international tournament, bringing together some of the top youth teams in Asia. In addition to Vietnam U22 and hosts China, the two guest teams, Uzbekistan and South Korea, are also familiar opponents, having previously competed against Vietnam U22 in the international friendly organized by the CFA in March 2025.
“At that tournament, Vietnam U22 drew 1-1 with South Korea, 0-0 with Uzbekistan, and 1-1 with China. Those matches truly helped our young players develop significantly, laying the foundation for Vietnam U22 to win the 2025 Southeast Asian U23 Championship, and also secure victories in the 2026 AFC U23 Qualifiers,” shared Coach Dinh Hong Vinh.
Coach Dinh Hong Vinh also expressed his hope that continuing to face strong opponents at the CFA Team China – Panda Cup 2025 will provide an important stepping stone for Vietnam U22 to consolidate their squad and refine their style of play ahead of two major upcoming objectives: SEA Games 33 and the 2026 AFC U23 Championship.
At the same time, Coach Dinh Hong Vinh candidly acknowledged the challenges in preparing for this tournament, as many players were still participating in the 2025/26 V.League and could not join the squad early. “It wasn’t until this afternoon that we had the full team, with six players having just completed their club duties. However, the squad has undergone continuous preparation through multiple training camps since the end of 2024, so this isn’t a major obstacle. The entire team will give their utmost effort to perform well and achieve the highest professional standards, thereby creating momentum ahead of SEA Games 33,” he said.
According to the schedule, this afternoon (November 11), Vietnam U22 will hold their first training session in Sichuan. Prior to that, immediately after settling in, the coaching staff only organized light stretching exercises within the hotel grounds to help players recover after the long journey.
