Czech goalkeeper set for Vietnamese citizenship

After a long wait, Filip is expected to get Vietnamese citizenship on Dec. 5, Thanh Nien newspaper reported. This is compulsory for him to represent the Vietnam national football team.

Filip had expressed his desire in the past to represent Vietnam when he was still playing in the Czech Republic. However, the procedures for his naturalization were not simple, as the 31-year-old keeper was still playing abroad at that time. Filip is currently playing for CAHN and residing in Vietnam, so his naturalization is being carried out quickly.

The 2024 Asian Cup will take place from Jan. 12 to Feb. 10 next year in Qatar. Coach Philippe Troussier's team will gather at the end of December and have about two weeks to prepare for the competition.

Vietnam are in group D with Japan, Indonesia and Iraq. The 2024 Asian Cup has 24 participating teams divided into six groups. The top two teams in each group and the four best third-place teams will advance to the round of 16.

Vietnam's top priority is getting past the group stage. At the most recent Asian Cup in 2019, Vietnam and coach Park Hang-seo reached the quarterfinals.

Born to a Vietnamese father and a Czech mother, Filip graduated from Sparta Prague’s youth football academy and played for the club before moving to other domestic clubs like Bydzov, Vlasim, Slova Liberec, and Slovacko.

He was voted the best keeper in the Czech First League in the 2018-19 season.