Indonesian media express concern over Vietnam's recent actions

Vietnamese football has secured every prestigious regional trophy last year and continues to be a top candidate in competitions in 2026.

The year 2025 marked a great success for Vietnamese football as the team led by coach Kim Sang-sik won all the major regional titles, including the AFF Cup, Southeast Asian U23 Championship, and SEA Games. The "Golden Star Warriors" are expected to replicate this achievement at the 2026 AFF Cup.

Observing Vietnam's football development, Indonesian media are quite worried. Recently, the publication superball expressed concern that Vietnam might field more naturalized players at the 2026 AFF Cup, following the success of Nguyễn Xuân Son.

“At the 2024 AFF Cup, naturalized striker Nguyễn Xuân Son emerged as the brightest star with 7 goals throughout the tournament. This was his first competition after officially acquiring Vietnamese nationality. Xuân Son’s success has encouraged the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) to continue placing trust in naturalized players,” Superball noted.

“At the 2026 AFF Cup, Xuân Son is likely to receive support from his former Nam Định club teammate Đỗ Hoàng Hên. He was granted Vietnamese citizenship at the end of 2025 and is ready to represent the national team. Previously, this midfielder also expressed his desire to play for Vietnam’s national squad,”the Indonesian newspaper added.

“Besides Hoàng Hên, several other players of Vietnamese origin are awaiting completion of their naturalization procedures. Among them are Kyle Colonna, Adou Minh, Kevin Pham Ba, and Patrik Le Giang. Furthermore, after successes at youth levels, some U23 Vietnamese players may be promoted to the national team. Young talents like Khuất Văn Khang and Nguyễn Đình Bắc are expected to bring fresh energy to coach Kim Sang-sik,”Superball concluded.

The 2026 AFF Cup is a special edition held to celebrate the 30th anniversary of this biennial tournament. According to official announcements, the AFF Cup 2026 will take place from July 24 to August 26.

The group stage format remains unchanged from previous editions, with 10 teams divided into two groups. Each team will play two home and two away matches in the group stage. Then, the semifinals and finals will be played over two legs, home and away.

Vietnam is currently the defending champion after a 5-3 aggregate victory over Thailand in the final matches.