The top three young footballer who were selected for a one-month training course in Qatar pose with Vietnam national team coach Henrique Calisto

Qatar’s Aspire Academy is overlooking the talent of young Vietnamese footballers, say many who feel the program could be doing more to nurture young Vietnamese players.

The program was carried out by the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) and the bureau of general public sports under the General Department of Physical Training and Sports in cooperation with Qatar’s Aspire Academy.

Fifty of the best young athletes were selected and tested at HCMC Thanh Long Stadium, and of this group, the top three were chosen to be sent to Qatar for training.

The three selected teens, Phan Kien Trung of Ho Chi Minh City, and Doan Hoai An and Ngo Duy Cu from Ca Mau Province, left for Qatar on January 2 this year for a one-month training course along with 20 other teens from seven African countries and Paraguay.

However, the three Vietnamese youths failed to attain a scholarship for further training and were then required to return home.

Program manager Josep Colomer explained that only three athletes, a Cameroonian, a Kenyan and a Nigerian, were ultimately chosen for further intensive training in the program. The 17 African youths were sent to a training center in Senegal while the three Vietnamese and the youth from Paraguay did not make the cut as the training and living conditions in Africa would be too difficult, Colomer said.

Speaking to Thanh Nien, the three Vietnamese youths said the short course was very valuable but now they would have no further opportunities in Vietnam.

The Aspire Academy says it will launch a similar campaign this year but it may result in the same end for young Vietnamese hopefuls.

VFF Chairman Nguyen Trong Hy said, “What is difficult for Vietnamese boys is that they are not tall and big enough. Many boys of 13 from other countries stand 1.8 meters. We can only introduce these boys to local centers or clubs.”

Some say VFF and Aspire should set up a more practical program. They could establish an academy like Hoang Anh Gia Lai-Arsenal JMG or something similar to the Scavi Rocheteau football training center. Only then will VFF and Aspire not waste the talent of the youth they seek.

Reported by Quang Tuyen