Overseas Vietnamese talent promoted to B team by former Belgian champion

The honor of overseas Vietnamese talent

Young talent Pham Anh Khoi has a special honor when Royal Antwerp Club (who won the Belgian championship in the 2022-2023 season) put his name on the B team list. This is the team closest to the first team currently participating in the Belgian Pro League of Antwerp. At the age of 18, the overseas Vietnamese talent will train with his seniors U.22 and U.23 to compete for a place in the first team.

Pham Anh Khoi was born in 2007 in Hanoi , his father and mother are both Vietnamese. Anh Khoi and his family moved to Belgium in 2009, when he was only 2 years old. In the country known as the "heart of Europe", Anh Khoi showed his special talent for playing football.

PHOTO: ROYAL ANTWERP

Initially, Anh Khoi was noticed by OH Leuven (a team that also plays in the Belgian national championship). This was also the starting point for the overseas Vietnamese born in 2007. After 12 years of struggling, the most memorable of which was the period playing for the Royal Antwerp youth team when Anh Khoi was called up to play for the Belgian U.16F, the overseas Vietnamese player was promoted to the B team.

"Anh Khoi is a creative striker, with the ability to play in many different positions. Anh Khoi's speed, ball control and dribbling ability will help U.23 Royal Antwerp decide the match," affirmed Mr. Jean Kindermans, director of the Royal Antwerp Youth Football Training Academy.

In the 2022-2023 season, Anh Khoi contributed to 21 goals (11 goals, 10 assists) after 24 matches in the Belgian U.16 Elite tournament. Anh Khoi was called up to the Belgian U.16F team. U.16F (abbreviation for U.16 Future) is a team for players who have not yet fully developed physically in Belgian football.

PHOTO: ROYAL ANTWERP

Anh Khoi is 1.7 m tall, possesses agility, speed and neat, delicate ball handling. Trained according to European standards, Anh Khoi has good endurance, along with the ability to move continuously at high intensity. Anh Khoi can play many positions from striker (number 9), winger (number 7 or 11), or play in the center position (number 10).

Quality overseas Vietnamese cast

Anh Khoi was once introduced to play for the U.17 Vietnam team, but the overseas Vietnamese talent has not had the chance. However, with great potential and the honor of playing in the Belgian national championship this season, Anh Khoi could have a chance with the U.19 or U.23 Vietnam team in the next 1 or 2 years.

Mr. Khoi has Vietnamese nationality (born in Vietnam, both parents are Vietnamese) and is ready to join the national team if called up.

Besides Anh Khoi, Vietnamese football also has many overseas Vietnamese talents who have played or are playing in Europe. Besides Brandon Ly (a young talent who played for U.21 Burnley) and Tran Thanh Trung (who played in the Bulgarian national championship with CSKA Sofia), there is also Julien Nguyen, an overseas Vietnamese who is playing for U.19 Fuenlabrada in the Spanish youth tournament.

Sharing with Thanh Nien Newspaper, Coach Kim Sang-sik affirmed that he will discuss with the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) about the case of overseas Vietnamese players, to plan who to call up and use in which team... in the near future.