Vietnamese midfielder among most valuable SEA players

By Hoang Nguyen February 3, 2021 | 07:30 pm PT

Nguyen Quang Hai (in red) dribbles past two players in a friendly match between Vietnam national team and the Vietnam U23 team on December 27, 2020. Photo by VnExpress/Kim Hoa.

Sports site ASEAN Football has chosen Nguyen Quang Hai to represent Vietnam in its list of most valuable Southeast Asian players by country.

Hai, who is playing for Hanoi FC, is valued at €300,000 ($362,508) on the renowned German football site Transfermarkt, which made him rank sixth on the list, carrying the same value as Singaporean midfielder Hariss Harun and Myanmar forward Aung Thu.

Above them are Indonesian midfielder Stefano Lilipaly and Malaysian-Kosovan midfielder Liridon Krasniqi at €350,000 in fourth. Peaking third is Timorese-Brazilian striker Patrick Fabiano, who is priced at €650,000. Thailand midfielder Chanathip Songkrasin valued at €1.7 million.

The Philippines has the most valuable Southeast Asian player, keeper Neil Etheridge, who is playing for English Championship team Birmingham City. He carries a value of €2.4 million.

The most valuable Southeast Asian players by country. Photo courtesy of ASEAN Football.

The list also includes Cambodian-French defensive midfielder Thierry Bin (€225,000), Bruneian midfielder Faiq Bolkiah (€200,000) and Laotian midfielder Bounphachan Bounkong (€100,000).

In Vietnam, there are also four other players that have the same value as Quang Hai - center-back Que Ngoc Hai (Viettel FC), goalkeeper Dang Van Lam (Cerezo Osaka), forward Nguyen Van Toan (Hoang Anh Gia Lai) and striker Nguyen Tien Linh (Becamex Binh Duong).

All these Vietnamese players are part of the national squad, which is valued at €4.63 million, after Thailand (€9.55 million), Indonesia (€5.4 million) and the Philippines (€5.15 million).