Beyond the trophy: Kim Sang Sik's FIFA ASEAN Cup mission

Late afternoon in Valencia, I still follow the Vietnam national team's training sessions through a small screen. One detail made me pause: Kim Sang Sik stood silently for nearly twenty minutes, without intervening, just observing his players performing a three-touch combination drill in a tight area. He wasn't shouting, wasn't directing, wasn't taking notes. But his eyes told me he was reading every movement. That's the image of a craftsman checking every joint before taking the machine onto a long road. The FIFA ASEAN Cup 2026, held in Indonesia from September 24 to October 5, is not an ordinary friendly tournament. For Kim Sang Sik and his players, this tournament matters far more than defending an already-won title. The context of this tournament is special. This is the first time FIFA directly sponsors a Southeast Asian regional tournament, marking an institutional and commercial upgrade. Vietnam arrives as the reigning ASEAN Cup 2026 champions, a title that has confirmed their number-one status in the region. But that very success raises a bigger question: after conquering Southeast Asia, what more does Vietnam have to prove? From my years of following national teams, this is the most dangerous moment. When a team reaches the regional summit, they often fall into complacency or lose direction. Kim Sang Sik seems to understand this well. Instead of treating the FIFA ASEAN Cup as an occasion to celebrate, he is turning it into a tactical laboratory. What I admire most in Kim Sang Sik's approach is his rare sobriety. Over the past two years, Vietnam entered many matches as favourites, and that very status has hidden underlying weaknesses. When opponents often sit deep and defend in numbers, Vietnam's defence is rarely tested against quick counter-attacks or sudden transition moments. But at the 2027 Asian Cup, Vietnam will face teams with superior speed and technique like Japan, South Korea, Iran, or Australia. Then, the space behind the defensive line will become a death zone if not addressed in time. Kim Sang Sik has spoken about needing "more solutions" when facing stronger opponents. That statement is not merely about tactics. It reflects the reality that the current system, though effective regionally, remains untested at continental level. I remember an afternoon at Levante's youth academy, where I learned to watch a boy kick a ball for three hours just to perfect his touch. Kim Sang Sik is doing something similar with the Vietnam national team. The FIFA ASEAN Cup is the real competitive environment where he can test new players, new formations, and different approaches without bearing the heavy consequences of World Cup qualifiers or the Asian Cup. This is a smart strategy from a coach with long-term vision. Instead of using friendlies for experimentation — which often lack intensity and don't reflect reality — he chooses an official tournament with real pressure to evaluate each player's capability under fierce competition. The 12-day tournament, with its dense match schedule, will be a perfect test of endurance and squad depth. However, this very smartness creates a potential contradiction. Vietnamese media and fans expect the team to reach the final. That is the immediate target set by the team's management. But if Kim Sang Sik prioritises experimentation, the team might not achieve the best results in the early rounds. I have witnessed many teams fail because of the conflict between result-oriented goals and development goals. In Spain, I've seen coaches harshly criticised for rotating squads in important matches. But I've also seen teams that dared to take that risk and then reaped greater success in bigger tournaments. The question is: are Vietnamese fans patient enough to accept a suboptimal short-term result in exchange for significant progress at the 2027 Asian Cup? There is a counter-intuitive perspective I find worth pondering. Vietnam's regional dominance over the past two years may have created a "tactical comfort zone" — where weaknesses in transition defence have never been seriously tested. When opponents always play low and concede possession, Vietnam's defence rarely faces lightning-fast counter-attacks. But at the 2027 Asian Cup, that will change completely. Teams like Japan or South Korea will not hesitate to push high and attack directly. Without proper preparation, Vietnam might be shocked by the speed and intensity of continental football. The FIFA ASEAN Cup, with Indonesia as hosts and being the most dangerous opponent, is the perfect chance for Kim Sang Sik to test his team's resilience against a physically strong side with a passionate home crowd. Indonesia, with home advantage, will be the first real test. The fervour of tens of thousands of Indonesian fans can create a daunting atmosphere, and that's exactly what Vietnam needs to get used to before the Asian Cup. I have seen many teams collapse psychologically just from the pressure of the stands. If Vietnam overcomes this challenge, they will gain enormous confidence. Conversely, if they lose an important match due to psychological errors, it will be a costly but necessary lesson ahead of a bigger tournament. Kim Sang Sik, with his South Korean background, embodies a football philosophy that values discipline, intensity, and thorough preparation. He is not someone who easily accepts superficiality. That's why I believe he will use this tournament as intelligently as possible. The most important thing I notice in Kim Sang Sik's approach is strategic patience. He is not swayed by the glamour of victories over weaker opponents. Instead, he looks further ahead, towards the 2027 Asian Cup — the biggest objective of his tenure. This tournament will be the perfect stepping stone to finalise his squad, test tactical options, and build team depth. I have seen many coaches fail because they focused only on immediate results while forgetting the bigger picture. Kim Sang Sik does not make that mistake. He is building a team that can compete at continental level, not just a team that is the strongest in the region. I once wrote: "Spain didn't lose on penalties; they lost from the night no one dared to shoot." For Vietnam, I want to say: the team will not fail at the Asian Cup for lack of talent, but for lack of preparation for situations they have never faced. The FIFA ASEAN Cup is the opportunity to fill those gaps. Kim Sang Sik understands that a regional trophy cannot be the final destination. Vietnamese football is ready for a bigger step forward, but that step needs to be prepared with meticulousness and science. And that is exactly what he is doing right now. Staying up is not a ranking; it's how a provincial team still shows up when no one is watching. For Vietnam, maintaining their number-one status in Southeast Asia is also not the final destination. What matters more is how the team rises to continental level, how they face bigger challenges. The FIFA ASEAN Cup 2026 will give us the first answer about whether Kim Sang Sik is on the right track. And whatever the result, I believe what he learns from this tournament will be a solid foundation for Vietnamese football's journey to conquer Asia.