Vietnamese midfielder among best young talents in world football: UK newspaper

The Vietnamese star is the only Southeast Asian to make the list of players born in 2006.

Only two other Asian players made the cut, Japanese striker Gaku Natawa and South Korean striker Kim Myung-jun.

The list also has some famous young players like Endrick of Real Madrid and Warren Zaire-Emery of PSG.

The newspaper wrote: "Vietnam are blessed with many technical, fast players who are equally comfortable on either foot but Long Vu already has fans excited about how far he can go.

He impressed so much at Asia's U17 Championship that he was called up to the country's under-23 team. His pace, slight build, dribbling and ability to whip balls into the area has led some fans to compare him to Phil Foden. Young Vietnamese talents don't always progress as much as they should but with the right coaching and club, Long Vu could go very far indeed."

Vu, who was born in the northern province of Ha Tinh, joined the youth academy of V. League club SLNA at 11.

He was a member of the Vietnamese U17 team that trained in Germany in 2021, before being called up to the U19 and U23 teams.

He is now waiting to make his debut for SLNA's first team.

Vietnam U23 head coach Hoang Anh Tuan, who has coached Vu at various youth levels, said he has immense potential.

"Long Vu has great technique and mindset in football," he told VnExpress. "His small physique is a disadvantage, but he is still growing."

The Guardian has in the past, in its 2014 list, picked another Vietnamese player, midfielder Phan Thanh Hau.

A product of the HAGL football academy, he played for the club from 2015 to 2022 but had limited game time.

Now at the age of 26, he is playing for Phu Dong FC in the second division.