VietNamNet Bridge – Viet Nam's under-23 football team will meet Myanmar in the opener of the international VFF-Eximbank Cup tournament at My Dinh National Stadium next Wednesday.

Warming up: Viet Nam's U-23 team started training in Ha Noi in preparation for the international VFF-Eximbank Cup on October 18-23. The hosts will meet Myanmar in the opener next Tuesday. (Photo: VNS)
The annual tournament will see Malaysia, Uzbekistan, Myanmar and Viet Nam compete in a round robin for a US$25,000 cash-prize at the 40,000-seat stadium on October 19-23.

Viet Nam hardest opponents will be Malaysia's U23 side who they will face next Sunday and who won the SEA Games gold medal in Laos, beating Viet Nam 1-0 to win.

The competition will be a test for squads heading to the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Indonesia next month.

Viet Nam's U23 team are hoping to clinch the SEA Games gold medal in football - a feat that hasn't yet been achieved since the compassion begun in Thailand in 1959.

Defender Nguyen Thanh Long Giang, a veteran of two SEA Games, will return to the squad after a knee ligament injury and new players Bui Xuan Hieu, Ngoc Anh, Anh Quang and Nguyen Van Nam will hope to make a strong impact.

The team had a short training session at Ham Rong Sport Centre in the Central Highland province of Gia Lai last week before starting their practice in Ha Noi on Monday.

German coach Falko Goetz will test out his squad at the VFF Cup as he looks to find the right balance before the SEA Games.

"We have been working hard with planned programmes, which helps players reach top form," Goetz told reporters after training.

"Viet Nam's U23 team will contest in the VFF Cup as a crucial test for the SEA Games – the most important sport event of the year – with the aim of winning a gold medal in the SEA Games," said vice chairman of the Viet Nam Football Federation Nguyen Lan Trung.

The VFF also signed a sponsorship contract with the Export and Import Bank in a ceremony in Ha Noi yesterday, Oct 12.

VietNamNet/Viet Nam News