Vietnamese-Czech goalkeeper changes mind on playing for Vietnam

By Lam Thoa   May 22, 2019 | 12:46 am PT
Vietnamese-Czech goalkeeper changes mind on playing for Vietnam
Filip Nguyen is currently the main goalkeeper of Slovan Liberec, one of the most successful clubs in the Czech Replublic. Photo acquired by VnExpress
Goalkeeper Filip Nguyen, initially keen on acquiring Vietnamese citizenship, now wants to stay on in Europe.

The 26-year-old goalkeeper told Czech media site Bezfrazi: "At one point I was doing research on [Vietnamese] citizenship, but now I'm determined to stay in Europe."

He clarified with Vietnamese media later that he is not going to play for Vietnamese clubs and wants to wear the Czech national team jersey in the future.

Filip’s father is Vietnamese and his mother is Czech. However, he hasn't had much connection with Vietnam because his father left when he was a child. He doesn't have Vietnamese citizenship and cannot speak any Vietnamese.

"I have no memory of my father. When my first grade teacher asked me what my father does, I didn’t know what to say," he added.

Filip Nguyen is currently the main goalkeeper of Slovan Liberec, one of the most successful clubs in the Czech Republic. The club is currently sixth in the Czech First League table and has a chance to play in the Europa League next season. He is worth EUR750,000 ($839,000) according to German football transfer site Transfermakt.

Filip Nguyen attended trials for Thanh Hoa FC in 2016 but didn’t succeed.

Recently, Vietnam’s national team coach Park Hang-seo made a visit to Europe to watch some of the Vietnamese-origin players and assess their ability to play for the national football team. During his trip, Park only scouted Alexander Dang, the striker of Norwegian club Nest Sotra.

The Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) has said that Park had no plans for scouting on Filip Nguyen yet.

 
 
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