Hanoi (VNA) – Head coach Cristiano Roland has summoned 34 players for the national U17 team to prepare for the AFC U17 Asian Cup Finals 2025 in Saudi Arabia, according to the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF).
Most of the key players had played in the 2025 AFC U17 Qualifiers or were called up previously.
In order to increase the competitiveness in the team, Roland also gave opportunities to new faces, notably Thomas Mai Veeren, a Vietnamese-Dutch player.
Thomas, born in 2008, also known by his Vietnamese name Mai Cong Thanh, has a Dutch father and a Vietnamese mother. He is said to be able to play well in many positions in midfield, including attacking midfielder, central midfielder and winger. He is playing for HV Quick Club in the Netherlands. He underwent training in professional teams such as ADO Den Haag and Feyenoord Rotterdam, as well as participated in the youth teams of the Dutch Football Federation from 2018 to 2023.
The U17 team will undergo a training period at the Vietnam Youth Football Training Centre, and then in Oman from March 23-29.
They will have two matches with the hosts U17 Oman before moving to Saudi Arabia to participate in the 2025 AFC U17 Finals.
According to FIFA's decision, from 2025, the FIFA U17 World Cup Finals will be held annually instead of every two years, and the number of participating teams will increase from 24 to 48, of which Asia will be awarded eight slots. This means eight teams which make it to the Quarterfinals of the 2025 AFC U17 Championship will qualify for the FIFA U17 World Cup Finals.
At the 2025 AFC U17 Finals, Vietnam are in the same group with defending champions Japan, Australia - which had advanced to the semifinals three times - and the UAE.
The Vietnamese players are expected to face difficulties but with careful preparations and determination, they are striving to win a ticket to the FIFA U17 World Cup 2025, said head coach Roland./.
