Young players to play friendlies against Tajikistan ahead of U23 Asian Cup
VOV.VN - The Vietnamese U23 team are set to play two friendly matches against Tajikistan in March to prepare for the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U23 Asian Cup's final round.
As many as 30 footballers are set to gather on March 12 for a training camp at the Vietnam Youth Football Training Center in Hanoi. They are then scheduled to depart for Tajikistan four days later before playing two friendly matches against the hosts Tajikistan on March 20 and March 23.
At the AFC U23 Asian Cup's final round, which is scheduled to take place in Qatar from April 15 to May 3, Vietnam will play in Group D alongside Uzbekistan, Kuwait, and Malaysia.
In Qatar, the four teams will compete in a round-robin format in the group stage. The two strongest ones will then advance to the quarter-final stage.
Uzbekistan are theoretically considered to be the strongest team because they have regularly recorded good results at continental youth tournaments over recent years.
The AFC U23 Cup Finals will also serve as a qualifier for the 2024 Olympics which will be held in France.
The top three finishers will qualify for the Paris Games, while the fourth-placed team will participate in a playoff against an opponent from the Confederation of African Football (CAF) for a chance to compete at the Olympics.
