Tran Trung Kien wants to beat China as a gift for the fans

*Vietnam vs China: 10:30 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 20, on VnExpress.

"We are in good spirits," goalkeeper Trung Kien said at a press conference on the afternoon of Jan. 19. "The whole team will play with focus and follow the coaching staff's tactics. We will definitely give 100% of our strength to win for the fans."

Trung Kien and his teammates are enjoying a successful tournament, having won all their matches in the group stage (against Jordan, Kyrgyzstan and Saudi Arabia) and the quarterfinals (against the UAE). By contrast, China advanced from the group stage with only four points and even became the first team in history to reach the semifinals with just one goal.

Even so, Vietnam's first-choice goalkeeper remains cautious. "China right now are a cohesive team with great strength. In this tournament, they have improved in every aspect. So tomorrow will be a very compelling match," he said.

Trung Kien has been one of Vietnam's standout players so far, making 12 saves from clear chances. However, his counterpart on the Chinese side, Li Hao, has been even more impressive with 24 saves and no goals conceded. According to the HAGL goalkeeper, such a clean-sheet record is admirable for any goalkeeper.

"The goalkeeper position always comes with difficulties and challenges, so going four matches without conceding is something worthy of recognition," Trung Kien said. "Li is a good goalkeeper, with a complete skill set, and he is continuing to develop into a top-class goalkeeper."

At U23 level, Vietnam have faced China eight times across all competitions. Each side has three wins, with two draws and three losses. In the two most recent meetings at the 2025 U22 Panda Cup friendly tournament, Vietnam won 1-0 and drew 1-1, giving them at least some psychological edge.

However, according to goalkeeper Trung Kien, every match and every tournament is different, requiring players to remain fully focused at all times. "We cannot judge an opponent by what has happened before. Each match requires different preparation. The whole team will have to play to our ability and bring out all of our strength in the coming matches," added the goalkeeper, who was born in 2003.

Trung Kien is originally from Hung Yen, but he was born and raised in Pleiku, Gia Lai, in a family with no sporting tradition. His childhood revolved mainly around football and matches on a dirt field near his home. At 11, he joined the HAGL academy.

During 2022-2023, Trung Kien was loaned in turn to Dong Nai and Cong an Nhan dan in the First Division to gain experience. In 2024, he became HAGL's hero when he saved penalties in three straight shootouts, helping the mountain-town youth team win the National U21 Championship for the first time.

Before shining at U23 level, Trung Kien was also part of Vietnam's youth teams at the 2018 AFF U15 Championship, the 2020 AFC U19 qualifiers and the 2022 AFC U23 Asian Cup finals. Under coach Kim Sang-sik, Kien was included in the squad that went on to win the 2024 ASEAN Cup as the third-choice goalkeeper behind senior keepers Nguyen Dinh Trieu and Filip Nguyen. He then became a key figure in helping Vietnam win the 2024 AFF U23 Championship and the gold medal at the 33rd SEA Games.

Duc Dong