A series of Vietnam national team stars will be absent in the match against Laos

Along with familiar players and Xuân Son’s comeback, the Vietnam squad still lacks many key figures, causing disappointment.

Accordingly, several players have yet to rejoin the team due to injuries, such as striker Nguyễn Văn Toàn, midfielder Châu Ngọc Quang, and Võ Hoàng Minh Khoa. All three suffered serious injuries and are likely only to return during next year’s training camps.

In goal, Vietnamese-European goalkeeper Nguyễn Filip remains absent. The CAHN player has missed the last two Vietnam national team call-ups. Partly because Nguyễn Filip has just recently recovered from injury, coach Kim Sang Sik probably does not want to take any risks with him.

Up front, although there were rumors of his inclusion, midfielder Đỗ Hoàng Hên—recently naturalized as Vietnamese—is not on the list. In fact, even if called up this time, Hoàng Hên cannot yet play for the "Golden Star Warriors" due to not meeting the five-year residency requirement. If he continues to perform well for Hà Nội FC, he will surely catch Coach Kim’s attention in future call-ups.

Additionally, the Vietnam team is missing several U23 players such as Trung Kiên, Đình Bắc, Thanh Nhàn, Xuân Bắc, Hiểu Minh, Nhật Minh... This young group will join the U23 Vietnam squad to participate in the 2025 Panda Cup friendly tournament (China) as preparation for the 33rd SEA Games.

On the other hand, Coach Kim Sang Sik welcomes back striker Nguyễn Xuân Son after 10 months of injury, promising to significantly strengthen the attack. Also, the best goalkeeper of the 2024 AFF Cup, Nguyễn Đình Triệu, has been called up following impressive performances with Hải Phòng in the V-League. The Korean coach also gave opportunities to newcomers like Khổng Minh Gia Bảo, Nguyễn Trần Việt Cường, Lê Văn Đô, and Trần Bảo Toàn.

According to the plan, the Vietnam national team will gather from November 10 to 19, 2025. After assembling at the Vietnam Youth Football Training Center, the team will move to Việt Trì (Phú Thọ) for training from November 11 to 14. From November 15 to 19, Coach Kim’s squad will travel to Laos to play the 5th match of the final round of the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers against the Laos national team.

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