HA NOI – The Viet Nam football team has employed a physical strength coach in their preparation for the Southeast Asian Football Federation Cup later this year.

He is Maltese-born English former defender Dylan Kerr, who arrived in Viet Nam last December to work for the V-League's Khatoco Khanh Hoa club.

Kerr was selected as a national team assistant last week under head coach Phan Thanh Hung.

Hung said physical strength could decide the success or failure of a football team.

"We need Dylan Kerr for the job," Hung said.

During his career Kerr played for different teams in the UK. He started at Sheffield Wednesday in 1984 who he helped win a Second Division champion title in his first season.

In 1989 Kerr moved to First Division's Leeds United which won the Cup in 1992, a year before the tournament became the Premier League.

He then joined the Kilmarnock Club for the 1996-97 season when they won the Scottish Cup.

After retirement in 2003, Kerr became a trainer and is now recognised as an expert in sport science and physique training. – VNS