Indonesian newspaper highly values U23 Vietnam’s Nguyen Hoang Duc

Jakarta (VNA) – Indonesia’s Suara newspaper recently run an article appreciating Vietnamese midfielder Nguyen Hoang Duc, on the threshold of the match between U23 Vietnam and U23 Indonesia in Group A of men’s football at the 31st Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games 31) on May 6.

Duc was called by Park Hang-seo to fill the senior slot of Vietnam. Therefore, the Indonesian U23 national team must keep a keen eye on him, the article wrote.

It also said Duc could be a card in coach Park Hang-seo's sleeve as the midfielder can be fielded as a striker if needed.

Besides Duc, the newspaper also pointed to three other Vietnamese players that U23 Indonesia should be careful about, namely striker Nguyen Van Tung and defenders Bui Hoang Viet Anh and Phan Tuan Tai.

Both Vietnam and Indonesia are strong candidates for the gold medal in men's football at SEA Games 31. Therefore, the match between the two  in Phu Tho province is assessed as the fiercest of Group A.

Vietnam won the first-ever SEA Games gold medal after defeating their Indonesian rivals 3-0 in the final of SEA Games 30 in the Philippines.

SEA Games 31, themed “For a Stronger South East Asia", is slated for May 12-23 in Hanoi and 11 nearby localities, featuring 40 sports. It is expected to attract around 10,000 participants.

The region's largest sport event has been postponed due to complicated developments of the COVID-19 pandemic. It was originally scheduled to take place from November 21 to December 2 last year./.