Vietnamese-Czech goalkeeper eligible for Asian Cup

A Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) executive told VnExpress on Wednesday that the AFC has confirmed Filip’s eligibility to play for the Vietnam national football team at next year’s Asian Cup.

Just a day before, the 31-year-old goalkeeper was included on Vietnam’s preliminary list of 50 potential players on the national squad. However, he was the only case pending assessment, as he was previously called up to the Czech national football team before obtaining Vietnamese citizenship on Dec. 6.

“I’m very happy to hear this news. I have waited nine years for my son to get citizenship and play for the Vietnam national team,” Nguyen Minh, Filip’s father, told VnExpress. “I can’t wait to see Filip play and proudly sing the Vietnamese national anthem. I hope that after Filip, many more players of Vietnamese descent around the world will return to play for their home country.”

Filip, born in 1992, has a Czech mother and a Vietnamese father. He started his career at a youth academy and then played for Sparta Prague’s first team, before moving to other Czech clubs like Bydzov, Vlasim, Slova Liberec and Slovacko. Filip was named the best goalkeeper in the Czech National Football League for the 2018-2019 season.

Filip has expressed his desire to play for the Vietnam national team while still playing club football in the Czech Republic.

However, he initially faced paperwork issues as he did not meet the residency requirements in Vietnam. During this period, Filip was called up to the Czech national team, but he did not get to play.

After joining Vietnamese club CAHN in the V. League 2023 season, Filip met the residency requirements and completed his naturalization process on Dec. 6. His wife and son had already previously obtained Vietnamese citizenship.

With his physique and technique, Filip has been raised by Vietnam’s national coach Philippe Troussier. He will compete with Dang Van Lam for a spot as the starting goalkeeper of the national team.

The 2024 Asian Cup will take place from Jan. 12 to Feb. 10 in Qatar. Vietnam are in group D and will face Japan on Jan. 14, Indonesia on Jan. 19 and Iraq on Jan. 24. The team will travel to Qatar on Jan. 5 before playing an exhibition match.