The new head coach Philippe Troussier said the immediate goal for the 32nd SEA Games is to have the best results and Vietnamese football towards the gold medal.
At the opening ceremony as the new head coach of the Vietnamese national football team on the morning of February 27, coach Philippe Troussier affirmed, “For me, a tournament like the SEA Games is in the roadmap towards the FIFA World Cup next year. 2026. I was assigned the task of leading 2 teams including the national team and the U23 Vietnam team, but I do not consider it separate. To achieve the goal of the FIFA World Cup in 2026, we need a core of players from the age of 22 to 27 and build a strong squad. SEA Games 32 is my first assignment as head coach. We have the goal of winning. The goal of the 32nd SEA Games is of course the gold medal. Football will only have one winning team, and what we need to care regarding beyond the title is the style of play, the spirit of the players.”
The new head coach Philippe Troussier himself also believes that the results for the SEA Games competition (winning SEA Games 30, SEA Games 31) that former coach Park Hang-seo had with Vietnamese football and Vietnamese sports in particular was a pressure. However, the French strategist said that he is present in Vietnam to strengthen his expertise as well as bring Vietnamese football to surpass the above results.
At the 32nd SEA Games in May, the organizing board of the host Cambodia’s men’s football has officially announced that only players under the age of 22 are allowed to attend. It is expected that on March 5, countries will officially register the list to attend the 32nd SEA Games, but football can be shortened at the time when the 32nd SEA Games is near.
