First Time Ever: Three Brazil-Born Players Start for Vietnam

🇧🇷 Đỗ Hoàng Hên (Hendrio)
🇧🇷 Nguyễn Xuân Sơn (Rafaelson)
🇧🇷 Nguyễn Tài Lộc (Geovane Magno) – making his international debut.
✅All three obtained Vietnamese citizenship through Vietnam’s naturalization process and are now officially Vietnamese nationals, making them eligible to represent Vietnam internationally.
The match also marked the debut of Patrik Lê Giang, a Vietnamese-Slovak goalkeeper who was born in Czechoslovakia to a Slovak mother and a Vietnamese father. He completed his Vietnamese citizenship process in January 2026, making him eligible to represent Vietnam.
Vietnam went on to defeat Myanmar 4–0, with goals from Nguyễn Xuân Sơn, Phạm Xuân Mạnh, Đỗ Hoàng Hên, and Đình Bắc. It was a confident performance and another positive step forward for Vietnamese football ahead of the ASEAN Cup 2026.
How far do you think Vietnam will go in the 2026 ASEAN Cup? Let me know in the comments!