After contributing to the Vietnamese national team at the AFF Cup 2024, it is time for the players to return to their clubs. Thanh Hoa Club and Hanoi Police Club are the two teams with the earliest schedules, having to compete on January 8 and January 9, within the framework of the 2024-2025 Southeast Asian Club Championship.

The Thanh team just had a 1-1 draw with Thailand's BG Pathum United. Meanwhile, the Hanoi Police Club will play away against Kaya FC (Philippines) at 6 p.m. on January 9. Therefore, after saying goodbye to the Vietnamese team, goalkeeper Nguyen Filip and the players of the police team left Vietnam to travel to the Philippines on January 7 to prepare for the competition in the regional tournament.

Notably, Nguyen Filip and Vietnamese players such as Quang Hai, Le Pham Thanh Long... will return to the familiar artificial turf stadium Rizal Memorial. This is the stadium where coach Kim Sang-sik and his team had a difficult 1-1 draw with the Philippines team in the group stage of the 2024 AFF Cup, thanks to a late goal in injury time by Doan Ngoc Tan.

After nearly a year of waiting, Nguyen Filip has won his first title with the Vietnamese team since his naturalization. Nguyen Filip won the 2024 AFF Cup, but he is no longer the number 1 goalkeeper.

The Vietnamese team played a total of 8 matches in the regional tournament. However, the goalkeeper of the Hanoi Police Club only started 2 matches, against Indonesia and the Philippines. In the remaining matches, coach Kim Sang-sik put his trust in goalkeeper Nguyen Dinh Trieu. Dinh Trieu played excellently and contributed greatly to the Vietnamese team winning the biggest tournament in Southeast Asia for the third time. Dinh Trieu was also voted the best goalkeeper of the 2024 AFF Cup.