Football

Coach Philippe Troussier talks with his U23 players during training. The team will compete in the AFF Championship in August in Thailand. Photo courtesy of VFF

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam is in Group C at the 2023 ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) U23 Football Championship.

After a draw conducted on May 29 in Bangkok, the defending champions are slotted to play the Philippines and Laos. Host Thailand, last year's first runner-up, will face Cambodia, Brunei and Myanmar in Group A while second runner-up Timor Leste will meet Malaysia and Indonesia.

Singapore will not compete after the defeat of their U22 squad at the 32nd SEA Games. The team has been under a review after a lackluster performance that placed them at the bottom in the group stage.

Bernard Tan, the acting president of the Football Association of Singapore announced that the Young Lions will not be involved in any international tournaments until a technical review of the failure at the SEA Games is completed and until the Young Lions are competitive enough to compete.

The championship will be organised from August 17-26 in Chonburi Province.

Teams will compete in a round robin format. The three top teams and the best second-place team will advance to the semi-finals.

Việt Nam will play its first match against Laos on August 20 and the Philippines two days later.

The highly anticipated tournament will serve as a prelude for the upcoming AFC U23 Asian Cup 2024 Qualifiers and the 19th Asian Games Hangzhou 2022 football competition, both taking place this September.

“We are pleased to unveil the dates and team groupings for this year’s AFF U23 Championship, which is not only an integral part of the AFF competitions but also an important platform to prepare the next generation of our football players to transit into the senior national teams,” said AFF President Major General Khiev Sameth.

“It has always been paramount in our minds, to make this a permanent fixture in our competitions calendar and we take immense pride in staging the Championship again this year. I am reflecting the deep appreciation of the AFF Council by expressing my profound gratitude to the Football Association of Thailand for their partnership in hosting the tournament in Chonburi,” he said.

President of the Football Association of Thailand, Police General Somyot Poompanmoung, said, “We are thrilled to host the AFF U23 Championship 2023, which offers a remarkable stage for our young aspiring future stars to display their skills and compete at the highest level. As one of the premier youth tournaments in the region, we are proud to bring this event to Chonburi so our fans can experience the beauty of Thailand and bring home many unforgettable memories. We look forward to welcoming the teams and delivering a competitive and memorable tournament come August,” he was quoted as saying on aseanfootball.org.

Việt Nam beat Thailand 1-0 to claim the championship title at the last final in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. VNS