Nguyễn Tiến Linh (born 20 October 1997) is a Vietnamese professional footballer who plays as a striker for V.League 1 club Becamex Bình Dương and the Vietnam national team.[2] In 2021, Tiến Linh was nominated by a panel of sports journalists and football experts for Best Footballer in Asia.[3] He is considered one of the best Vietnamese footballers of his generation. After the match against China in February 2022, he became the all-time leader for Vietnam in the World Cup qualifiers, passing Lê Công Vinh who had 7 goals.[4]
.png) Tiến Linh in 2023 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Nguyễn Tiến Linh | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 20 October 1997 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Cẩm Giàng, Hải Dương, Vietnam | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.81 m (5 ft 11 in)[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Striker | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Team information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Current team | Becamex Bình Dương | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Number | 22 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2009–2015 | Becamex Bình Dương | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2016– | Becamex Bình Dương | 165 | (64) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| International career‡ | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2015–2017 | Vietnam U19 | 11 | (5) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2018–2022 | Vietnam U23 | 30 | (12) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2018– | Vietnam | 53 | (22) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 20 November 2024 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 9 December 2024 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Early life
editNguyễn Tiến Linh was born and raised in the Cẩm Hoàng commune of the Cẩm Giang district, Hải Dương. At the age of 2, his mother moved to South Korea for work. At the age of 6, he followed his father to Bình Dương. His mother returned to Vietnam when he was 9 years old.[5]
Tiến Linh began playing football for his school team. At the age of 13, he followed his PE teacher's advice and participated in the trial test of Becamex Bình Dương, in which he was later admitted to the club. At first, he played as midfielder, but then switched to striker.[6]
Club career
editBecamex Binh Duong U19
edit2015
editWith 5 goals, Tiến Linh was the top scorer of Vietnamese National U-19 Football Championship.
Becamex Binh Duong
edit2016–present
editTiến Linh made his first debut with Becamex Binh Duong in 2016.
Over 4 years, Tiến Linh scored 26 goals, with fifteen in 2018, five in 2020, and six in 2021 before the cancellation of V.League 1.[7] Becamex Binh Duong won the Vietnamese National Football Super Cup and also placed second in the Vietnamese National Football Super Cup, also earning the Vietnamese Bronze Ball in 2022.[8]
International career
edit2018: First Match for Vietnam and won AFF Championship
editOn 8 November 2018, Tiến Linh made his debut for the national team in the match against Laos. He scored his first goal for Vietnam against Cambodia in their last group match. At the end, Tiến Linh and Vietnam won 2018 AFF Championship.
2019-present
edit2022 World Cup qualification
editOn 15 October 2019, Tiến Linh scored his first goal in 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification against Indonesia. A month later, he scored the only goal against UAE. In June 2021, he scored 3 goals in the last 3 matches of the second round of 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification to promote Vietnam to the third round. On 1 February 2022, he scored a goal in the match against China to surpass Le Cong Vinh as the top scorer for Vietnam in the history of World Cup qualification.[citation needed]
2020 AFF Championship
editIn 2020 AFF Championship, he scored a brace in a 4–0 win against Cambodia, but his team lost in the semi-finals to Thailand.
2022 AFF Championship
editTiến Linh scored 6 goals in 2022 AFF Championship to share the top goalscorer award with Thai striker Teerasil Dangda, but Vietnam once again lost Thailand by 2-3 on aggregate in the finals.
2026 World Cup qualification
editDuring the 2nd round, Tiến Linh scored two goals against the Philippines and was awarded the Player of the Match title. Vietnam however was eliminated of the World Cup.
Career statistics
editClub
edit- As of match played 20 November 2024
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Becamex Binh Duong | 2016 | V.League 1 | 15 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 1[a] | 0 | — | 20 | 3 | |
| 2017 | 12 | 2 | 5 | 1 | — | — | 17 | 3 | ||||
| 2018 | 19 | 15 | 6 | 0 | — | — | 25 | 15 | ||||
| 2019 | 17 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 7[b] | 1 | 1[c] | 0 | 28 | 10 | ||
| 2020 | 18 | 5 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 19 | 5 | ||||
| 2021 | 11 | 6 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 12 | 6 | ||||
| 2022 | 20 | 9 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 20 | 9 | ||||
| 2023 | 18 | 3 | 2 | 1 | — | — | 20 | 4 | ||||
| 2023-24 | 26 | 8 | 3 | 3 | — | — | 29 | 11 | ||||
| 2024-25 | 9 | 7 | 1 | 1 | — | — | 10 | 8 | ||||
| Total career | 165 | 64 | 26 | 9 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 200 | 74 | ||
- ^ Appearance(s) in AFC Champions League
- ^ Appearance(s) in AFC Cup
- ^ Appearance in Vietnamese Super Cup
International
editAs of match played 15 December 2024[9]
| National Team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vietnam | 2018 | 5 | 2 |
| 2019 | 7 | 2 | |
| 2021 | 16 | 7 | |
| 2022 | 7 | 3 | |
| 2023 | 9 | 4 | |
| 2024 | 9 | 4 | |
| Total | 53 | 22 | |
Scores and results list Vietnam's goal tally first. [9]
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 24 November 2018 | Hàng Đẫy Stadium, Hanoi, Vietnam |  Cambodia |
1–0 | 3–0 | 2018 AFF Championship |
| 2. | 25 December 2018 | Mỹ Đình National Stadium, Hanoi, Vietnam |  North Korea |
1–0 | 1–1 | Friendly |
| 3. | 15 October 2019 | Kapten I Wayan Dipta Stadium, Gianyar, Indonesia |  Indonesia |
3–0 | 3–1 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 4. | 14 November 2019 | Mỹ Đình National Stadium, Hanoi, Vietnam |  United Arab Emirates |
1–0 | 1–0 | |
| 5. | 7 June 2021 | Al-Maktoum Stadium, Dubai, United Arab Emirates | Indonesia |
1–0 | 4–0 | |
| 6. | 11 June 2021 |  Malaysia |
1–0 | 2–1 | ||
| 7. | 15 June 2021 | Zabeel Stadium, Dubai, United Arab Emirates | United Arab Emirates |
1–3 | 2–3 | |
| 8. | 7 October 2021 | Sharjah Stadium, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates |  China |
2–2 | 2–3 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 9. | 12 October 2021 | Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex, Muscat, Oman |  Oman |
1–0 | 1–3 | |
| 10. | 19 December 2021 | Bishan Stadium, Bishan, Singapore | Cambodia |
1–0 | 4–0 | 2020 AFF Championship |
| 11. | 2–0 | |||||
| 12. | 1 February 2022 | Mỹ Đình National Stadium, Hanoi, Vietnam | China |
2–0 | 3–1 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 13. | 21 December 2022 | New Laos National Stadium, Vientiane, Laos |  Laos |
1–0 | 6–0 | 2022 AFF Championship |
| 14. | 27 December 2022 | Mỹ Đình National Stadium, Hanoi, Vietnam | Malaysia |
1–0 | 3–0 | |
| 15. | 3 January 2023 |  Myanmar |
2–0 | 3–0 | ||
| 16. | 9 January 2023 | Indonesia |
1–0 | 2–0 | ||
| 17. | 2–0 | |||||
| 18. | 13 January 2023 |  Thailand |
1–0 | 2–2 | ||
| 19. | 6 June 2024 |  Philippines |
1–1 | 3–2 | 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification | |
| 20. | 2–1 | |||||
| 21. | 10 September 2024 | Thailand |
1–0 | 1–2 | 2024 LPBank Cup | |
| 22. | 9 December 2024 | New Laos National Stadium, Vientiane, Laos | Laos |
2–0 | 4–1 | 2024 ASEAN Championship |
Honours
editClub
editBecamex Binh Duong
International
editVietnam
Vietnam U23
Individual
edit- Vietnamese Silver Ball: 2022
- Vietnamese Bronze Ball: 2021
- AFF Championship Top scorer: 2022
- AFF Championship Best XI: 2022[10]
References
edit- ^ "Nguyễn Tiến Linh".
- ^ Nguyễn Tiến Linh at Soccerway
- ^ "Nguyễn Tiến Linh được đề cử danh hiệu Cầu thủ xuất sắc nhất châu Á 2021". congluan.vn. 17 December 2021. Retrieved 17 December 2021.
- ^ "Tiền đạo Nguyễn Tiến Linh: Phá kỷ lục, đặt mục tiêu mới". thanhnien.vn. 10 October 2021. Retrieved 10 October 2021.
- ^ "Cầu thủ Nguyễn Tiến Linh quê ở đâu? Tiểu sử cầu thủ Tiến Linh". 20 October 2021.
- ^ "Tuổi thơ 'dữ dội' và những chuyện ít biết về cầu thủ Tiến Linh". VietnamNet. 19 November 2019.
- ^ "Huỷ giải V.League 2021: Một quyết định lịch sử". laodong.vn. 24 August 2021. Retrieved 24 August 2021.
- ^ "Quả bóng Đồng - Nguyễn Tiến Linh: 'Xứng danh' trung phong số 1 Việt Nam". thethao247.vn. 12 February 2021. Retrieved 12 February 2022.
- ^ a b "Nguyễn Tiến Linh". at National-Football-Teams.com. Retrieved 9 June 2024.
- ^ "Register". Retrieved 21 September 2023 – via instagram.