Công Phượng unexpectedly 'disappears' from the First Division team

Up until October, Công Phượng has not made any appearances in the new season.

In the 3rd round of the First Division, Trường Tươi Đồng Nai hosted the weaker opponent Xuân Thiện Phú Thọ at home. Although the team is in good form, the "Green Storm" fans were once again disappointed as Công Phượng was not registered to play.

Thus, Công Phượng has yet to play any match for Trường Tươi Đồng Nai in the 2025/2026 season (3 First Division matches, 1 National Cup match). According to head coach Việt Thắng, Công Phượng only has a minor injury and occasionally attends training sessions with Trường Tươi Đồng Nai. However, every time a match takes place, Công Phượng is absent.

Fortunately, even without Công Phượng, Trường Tươi Đồng Nai is maintaining good form. After 3 matches, coach Việt Thắng's squad remains unbeaten with 2 wins and 1 draw, including an impressive 3-1 victory over V-League team Becamex TP HCM in the National Cup qualifiers.

After a year back playing in Vietnam, fans are eager to see Công Phượng wearing the familiar number 10 jersey again. Previously, in the 2024/2025 season, the former HAGL star wore number 70 when he first played for Trường Tươi Đồng Nai, a number under which he scored 7 goals in the First Division.

According to the registration list for the 2025/2026 season released by Trường Tươi Đồng Nai, Công Phượng will return to his iconic number 10 shirt. This marks his comeback to the familiar number 10 after 4 seasons.

The last time Công Phượng wore the number 10 jersey at club level was with HAGL in the 2021 season. This was also the first time the Nghệ An native wore number 10 for a club other than HAGL. During his stints abroad, Công Phượng never wore his usual number 10 jersey.