Vietnam U19 head coach among greatest in Asian Cup history

By Hoang Nguyen   July 17, 2020 | 05:08 am PT
Vietnam U19 head coach among greatest in Asian Cup history
Coach Philippe Troussier at the U13 Vietnam-Japan football tournament in 2019. Photo by VnExpress/Nhat Anh.
Philippe Troussier has been selected by Asian Football Federation (AFC) as one of the greatest coaches in Asian Cup history.

AFC chose Troussier because he led Japan to victory in 2000 in Lebanon, where the team beat Iraq, China and Saudi Arabia to lift the trophy.

"Appointed in 1998 after nearly a decade coaching in Africa, Frenchman Philippe Troussier led a swashbuckling Japan side to a second AFC Asian Cup title in Lebanon in 2000," AFC wrote. "The Samurai Blue scored 21 goals in just six matches, inflicting heavy losses on Saudi Arabia, Uzbekistan and Iraq, before defeating the defending champion Saudis once again in the final in Beirut."

Troussier went on to lead Japan to the Round of 16 at 2002 World Cup, before coaching Qatar at 2004 Asian Cup in China, where they exited the group stage early.

Besides Japan, Troussier has coached many other national teams like Nigeria, Burkina Faso, South Africa and Qatar.

In 2018, he became the technical director of the Promotion Fund of Vietnamese Football Talents (PVF). At the end of 2019, Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) chose him as head coach of the national U19 team.

He got the team through the 2020 AFC U19 Championship qualifiers and will continue leading it to a slot at 2021 U19 World Cup in Indonesia.

Other famous names on the list include Alberto Zaccheroni, Carlos Alberto Parreira, Zico and Felix Sanchez.

In the 64-year history of the tournament (first held in Hong Kong during 1956 and lastly in UAE during 2019), Japan have won the most titles with four, followed by Saudi Arabia and Iran with three, and South Korea with two.

 
 
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