“First of all, I would like to express my joy and pride to meet you again and accept the task of leading the Vietnamese team. I finally have the opportunity to return to the country that I loved during my time here three years ago," coach Philippe Troussier said at the signing ceremony of his labor contract with the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) and debut as the head coach of the Vietnamese football team, held in Hanoi on February 27.

"I fully understand the enormous importance of the job that I take on and I will be fully focused on it. For the goals ahead, I don't have to start from the zero. My predecessor, Mr. Park Hang Seo, has left a great legacy, which is a competitive squad. My understanding about the Vietnamese team and all national teams will also be a valuable document for me to conquer the road ahead," he said.

"Many tournaments will be held later, such as the SEA Games in May, the Asian U23 qualifiers, the 2026 World Cup qualifiers later this year and the 2024 Asian Cup. I and my associates have prepared plans for these tournaments,” added the French coach.

These tournaments are opportunities for the Vietnamese team to test itself to prepare for the 2026 World Cup. FIFA's expansion of the 2026 World Cup format to 48 teams is an opportunity for Vietnam. 

“This is the biggest goal we are all looking forward. This is an ambitious goal, of course, but it's possible and we'll work towards it together. We want to repay the trust of Vietnamese football fans," said coach Philippe Troussier.

Vice President of the Vietnam Football Federation Tran Anh Tu said: "The selection of the head coach was carefully prepared by VFF. VFF signed a contract with a term of more than 3 years. This is the result with a high consensus among the parties.”

“The VFF believes that with many years of experience leading many teams around the world and especially with 2 years working in Vietnam before, coach Philippe Troussier will help Vietnam achieve regional and continental goals. I wish Philippe Troussier success with his new job in Vietnam," Tu said.

Mr. Troussier's contract with the VFF has a term of 3.5 years, starting from March 1, 2023 to July 31, 2026. The monthly salary for him is about 60,000 USD.

Philippe Troussier will officially start his job from March 1, with the first training session in 2023 of the U23 Vietnam team in March and the 5 days gathering of the national team from March 8.

The first task of coach Philippe Troussier is the 32nd SEA Games that will take place in Cambodia in May. After two consecutive gold medals in 2019 and 2022 under the guidance of his predecessor Park Hang Seo, the new captain of the Vietnamese team is under a lot of pressure but also receives great expectations from fans and experts.

Dai Nam