Former Vietnam U20 captain says money problems cost him his career

Nguyễn Trọng Đại once stood among Vietnam’s most promising young footballers. At 21, he was part of the Vietnam U23 team that finished runner-up at the 2018 AFC U23 Championship in Changzhou, China, despite limited playing time.

The midfielder, who developed at Thể Công-Viettel, captained Vietnam’s U19 team at the 2016 AFC U19 Championship. Vietnam reached the semifinals and secured a historic place at the 2017 U20 World Cup in South Korea. But after those achievements, Trọng Đại’s career declined away from the pitch, and he could not return.

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Many people ask why Đại has to go online to ask for a job and what happened in Đại’s life.

In a recent Facebook post, he asked for work and looked back on the mistakes that changed his life. “Many people ask why Đại has to go online to ask for a job and what happened in Đại’s life,” he wrote. “I want to tell this story as honestly as possible so people can understand me and give me a chance to start again through my own work.”

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I want to help my mother receive treatment because she is the only family member I have left to support me. Please give me a chance to work, not money.

Trọng Đại initially said football betting was his biggest mistake. He wrote that he lent money to an older teammate, then became drawn into betting because he believed one win could recover everything. Instead, the losses grew, and he said he became unable to control the situation. He later edited that section, saying his original wording had been written emotionally and could cause misunderstandings or affect people who were not involved.

He said he lost everything around his 29th birthday after suffering a ligament injury that prevented his return to football and learning that his mother had cancer. He wrote that he had only a few dozen in his pocket and no job. “I want to help my mother receive treatment because she is the only family member I have left to support me,” he said. “Please give me a chance to work, not money.” He ended by reflecting that fame, money and relationships arrived too quickly when he was young, and that a lack of discipline can make everything disappear.

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Fame, money and relationships arrived too quickly when I was very young. I was not mature enough to understand that people may praise me today, but if I cannot maintain discipline, everything can disappear tomorrow.