Before being detained for his involvement in illegal drug use, Nguyen Ngoc Thang had just reached the quarterfinals of the 2024 U23 Asian Championship with U23 Vietnam.
Midfielder Nguyen Ngoc Thang once played for Vietnam U23 at the 2024 U23 Asian Championship. Photo: VFF
Nguyen Ngoc Thang was born in 2002 in Ky Phu commune, Ky Anh district, Ha Tinh province. This player is playing for Hong Linh Ha Tinh football club and most recently participated in the Vietnam U23 squad participating in U23 Asia 2024.
Before falling in love with professional football, Ngoc Thang came from the Phu Dong Association of Ha Tinh province. In 2013, when he was in 5th grade, Thang was on the list of football team members of the Ky Anh District Department of Education and Training.
After an impressive performance, Ngoc Thang was selected by Ha Tinh football team coaches to join the U12 team. In the early stages, he played as a striker but could not compete with his peers. At the age of 16, Ngoc Thang switched to playing the central defender position. From then on, he became a solid stopper in the defense.
At V.League 2020, coach Pham Minh Duc brought Ngoc Thang to the first team of Hong Linh Ha Tinh. However, he was not allowed to play a single minute and was always on the reserve list.
In November 2021, Ngoc Thang was loaned to Nutifood JMG by Ha Tinh to play in the National U21 tournament and received the trust of coach Guillaume Graechen.
In this tournament, the player born in 2002 played stably and contributed greatly to helping Nutifood JMG win the National U21 championship.
One year later, the U23 Vietnam midfielder played for Long An in the First Division, playing 12 matches in the 2022 season. In 2023, Ngoc Thang returned to play for Hong Linh Ha Tinh, playing 12 matches with 9 appearances in the official squad.
In the U23 Vietnam shirt, Ngoc Thang played impressively at SEA Games 32. Modern football thinking, good and stable tackling ability help the young player from Ha Tinh be trusted by many strategists.
However, at the recent U23 Asia, Ngoc Thang disappointed fans when he played without composure and received a red card in the opening match.