A friendly match with U23 India has been postponed until September 16, allowing an additional week for drill. Goalkeeper-caption Tan Truong is the team’s pillar.

Hoang Dinh Tung (Thanh Hoa) is among the team’s top scorers. The U-23 squad includes the best young players on V-League teams (in parentheses).

Long Giang (on the right) of Navibank Saigon was injured on September 8.

Promising striker Duc Thien (Binh Duong)

Danh Ngoc (Nam Dinh)

Halfback Chu Ngoc Anh (Nam Dinh).

Striker Nguyen Van Khai (Navibank Saigon, right).

Halfback Pham Minh Duc (Hoa Phat Hanoi, left)

Halfback Mai Tien Thanh (right), who scored five goals for U23 Vietnam at the Southeast Asian Games last year. Vietnam was the runner-up to Malaysia.

Halfback Thai Duong (Hoang Anh Gia Lai, left).

Coach Phan Thanh Hung, who just led Hanoi T&T to the V-League 2010 championship. U23 Vietnam will vie with U23 Singapore, U23 Iran and U23 Malaysia in the Thang Long-Hanoi Cup. While Hung trains Vietnam’s U-23’s for the matches in HCM City, Coach Calisto is readying the national team for matches from 20-24 September at Hanoi’s My Dinh Stadium against North Korea and the Kuwait and Australian U-23s.