OFFICIAL: Brazilian naturalized star misses Vietnam national team call-up due to FIFA regulations

FIFA has not recognized defender Phi Long (Gustavo) as having five consecutive years of residence in Vietnam, thus he does not meet the eligibility criteria for the national team.

Defender Phi Long (Gustavo) is also one of the players Coach Kim Sang-sik has been particularly focused on during the naturalization process, alongside Do Hoang Hen (Hendrio Araujo). The Korean coach values this defender's height and playing experience, and hopes he can help elevate the Vietnamese national team's defense in the future.

Despite receiving attention from the Vietnamese national team coaching staff, defender Gustavo Santos (Do Phi Long) confirmed to VTC News that he is not included in the training camp roster preparing for friendly matches against Bangladesh and the upcoming Asian Cup 2027 qualifier against Malaysia.

The reason is that Do Phi Long currently does not meet FIFA's eligibility requirements to play for the national team. For foreign-born naturalized players without Vietnamese ancestry, FIFA requires them to have played continuously in the new country for five years before being permitted to switch federations and represent the national team.

In reality, this defender has played in the V.League for nearly eight years. However, in 2022, when the domestic league was disrupted due to COVID-19, Phi Long returned to Brazil and played for about five months for Club Anapolis, an interval that interrupted his eligibility accumulation period.

According to FIFA regulations, Phi Long's case is not recognized because after his contract with Than Quang Ninh ended, he transferred to play for a club outside Vietnam. When he returned to the V.League, the five-year accumulation period for this defender had to restart from zero. Based on the current timeline, he will only meet the eligibility criteria to play for the Vietnam national team by mid-2027.

Nevertheless, Phi Long is still seeking ways to resolve this obstacle. The defender stated he is working with lawyers and receiving support from the VFF to persuade FIFA to reconsider his case, as his departure from Vietnam at that time was due to unavoidable circumstances when COVID-19 erupted and Than Quang Ninh Club disbanded.

HOT: Brazilian naturalized star confirmed to join Vietnam national team.

Upon his first call-up to the Vietnam national team, the European-born Vietnamese star reacted strongly.