Pham Tuan Hai (middle) is a rising star of the Vietnamese national team. (Photo: toquoc.vn) According to the AFC, since their impressive quarter-final finishat the 2019 AFC Asian Cup, Vietnam has witnessed the emergence of several newstars, with Hai standing out as one of the most prominent players in theSoutheast Asian nation.
"The forward has injected new dynamism into an alreadytalented attack, as head coach Philippe Troussier, who took over from thelong-serving Park Hang-seo earlier this year, aims to guide the Golden StarWarriors into the knockout rounds for the second consecutive edition," thewebsite stated.
Hai has the potential to light up the upcoming AFC Asian Cup,having displayed his remarkable abilities during the recently concluded AFCChampions League 2023-24 group stage as a key player for Hanoi FC.
The AFC also highlighted Hai's impressive statistics in recenttimes. He made his professional league debut for newly promoted Hong Linh Ha Tinhin the 2020 V.League 1, featuring in 20 matches and scoring three goals,contributing to their eighth-place finish in their debut season in the top tier.
Consistent performances, which included an additional four leaguegoals the following year, earned Hai his first senior national team cap in aFIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 qualifying match against Oman.
This achievement proved to be a stepping stone for Hai’s move to Hanoi,where he quickly became one of the most captivating performers in the domesticleague.
Among the list of stars expected to shine at the 2023 Asian Cupare Son Heung-min of the Republic of Korea, Takefusa Kubo of Japan, AliMabkhout of the United Arab Emirates, Akram Afif of Qatar, Mehdi Taremi ofIran, Ali Al Hamadi of Iraq, Asnawi Mangkualam of Indonesia, and Wu Lei ofChina.
Vietnam are placed in Group D of the tournament, alongside Japan(whom head coach Philippe Troussier of Vietnam led to the 2000 AFC Asian Cuptitle) and regional rivals Indonesia and Iraq.
Vietnam's matches in the group stage are scheduled. They will faceJapan on January 14 at Al Thumama Stadium, Indonesia on January 19 at Abdullahbin Khalifa Stadium, and Iraq on January 24 at Jassim bin Hamad Stadium.
The 2023 Asian Cup finals will feature 24 teams, including sevenformer champions, divided into six groups. The tournament will follow around-robin format within each group. The top two teams from each group, aswell as the four best-performing third-placed teams, will advance to the roundof 16.
In the 2019 Asian Cup, under the guidance of Korean coach ParkHang-seo, Vietnam advanced to the knockout round as one of the bestthird-placed teams, eventually losing 1-0 to Japan in the quarter-finals./.
VNA
