Gia Lai centre to provide top professional players

HA NOI – V-League football team Hoang Anh Gia Lai will recruit the first graduates to emerge from a training course at the Hoang Anh Gia Lai-Arsenal-JMG Academy in the next three years.

The US$4 million football academy in co-operation with English Premier League club Arsenal, began its first course under-12 year olds three years ago.

They have been undergoing professional football training and regular schooling under the seven-year free programme that is aimed at creating top international players.

"They will be the first players to graduate from our academy. Kids receive full time football training and education, to help them prepare to play professionally in Viet Nam or elsewhere in Asia, Europe or even England," deputy director of Hoang Anh Gia Lai Sports Stock Company Tran Van Minh said yesterday.

"We'll sign professional contracts with them by 2014 when they are 17 years old. They can play for Hoang Anh Gia Lai in the V-League or transfer to another team in Southeast Asia or Asia," Minh said.

He also added that coaches from Arsenal had said that two of the first intake of students eligible for European championships.

The academy enrolled 10 young hopefuls on the second course last year. – VNS

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Youth football training, an upset refrain in Vietnam

Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) Nguyen Trong Hy mentioned youth training again, citing it as one of the targets of the nation in the future to brace up national football. Yet, the issue has actually been named long ago this decade.

Hy gave Tuoi Tre an interview on Wednesday.

Do you think that the early exit of Vietnam at this month’s Suzuki Cup is rooted from sloppy youth training?

That’s right. Youth training has long relied on state budget. It is rooted from the lack of legal binding in protecting lawful rights of individual investors for players’ transfer after their graduation.

Thus, it has discouraged individuals from investing in football training.

We are now focusing on building up such regulations to ensure fair achievements for individual investors in the field.

It seems that club owners now prefer buying talents to training youths for years

They do want to join in youth training but as I said their rights are not well observed now.

It requires great sum of money to build nearly perfect school as Aspire Academy in Qatar or Hoang Anh Gia Lai – Arsenal Football Academy in Vietnam’s Gia Lai Province.

Can you brief youth training in Vietnam during the past years?

If compared it to a tree, we can cover only the top of a tree by organizing tournaments for youth national teams to compete. This year, we set up 7 teams.

As for the root of a tree or daily professional training, clubs take care about it and get annually paid from the state budget.

Many provincial clubs have ignored youth training system. The Mekong Delta area with 12 provinces has only 3 youth teams.

Vietnam has 14 top-flight V-League clubs and 14 others playing at First Division but in total, we have only 17 youth teams competing at national youth leagues.

What should we do to change it?

In two or three years, the VFF will have sufficient fund -- from broadcasting copyrights and budget and we will re-establish a national U-19 league that all clubs at the top two leagues must send their young teams to partake.

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