Cầu thủ phải chịu đau.

A word-by-word breakdown is:

• cầu thủ = player / athlete, often especially a sports player
• phải = must / have to
• chịu đau = endure pain / tolerate pain

So the structure is basically:

• Cầu thủ = subject
• phải = modal verb
• chịu đau = main idea of the action

Even though the full meaning has already been given, it helps to see how the sentence is built piece by piece.

It can mean either, depending on context.

Vietnamese nouns usually do not change form for singular vs. plural. So cầu thủ can mean:

• a player
• the player
• players
• the players

Context tells you which one is meant.

If the speaker wants to make it clearly plural, they might add something like:

• các cầu thủ = the players / players
• những cầu thủ = players / some players

So in this sentence, cầu thủ is grammatically neutral about number unless the context makes it clear.

Vietnamese usually does not require articles like English does.

In English, you normally need to say:

• the player
• a player

But in Vietnamese, a bare noun like cầu thủ is often enough.

That means Cầu thủ phải chịu đau could be understood as something like:

• A player must endure pain
• The player must endure pain
• Players must endure pain

The exact interpretation comes from the situation, not from an article.

Phải means must, have to, or need to.

It expresses obligation or necessity. In this sentence, it tells us that enduring pain is seen as necessary for the player.

A very simple pattern is:

• Subject + phải + verb

Examples:

• Tôi phải đi. = I have to go.
• Anh ấy phải học. = He must study.
• Cầu thủ phải chịu đau. = The player must endure pain.

Depending on context, phải can sound like:

• a strong obligation
• a practical necessity
• something expected

Because đau by itself usually means to hurt, to be in pain, or painful.

Examples:

• Tôi đau. = I’m in pain.
• Chân tôi đau. = My leg hurts.

But chịu đau means to bear/endure pain. The verb chịu adds the idea of tolerating, putting up with, or enduring something.

So the difference is roughly:

• đau = be in pain
• chịu đau = endure pain / tolerate pain

That makes chịu đau a better match for the idea of toughness or necessity.

Yes, it is a very common expression.

chịu đau often means:

• to tolerate pain
• to be able to take pain
• to endure suffering physically

For example:

• Nó rất chịu đau. = He/She can really take pain.
• Muốn chơi môn này thì phải chịu đau. = If you want to play this sport, you have to be able to endure pain.

So in your sentence, chịu đau sounds natural as a compact way to express physical endurance.

The structure is:

• Cầu thủ = subject
• phải = modal verb
• chịu đau = verb phrase

So the sentence follows a very common Vietnamese pattern:

• Subject + modal + verb/action

This is similar to English word order in sentences like:

• The player must endure pain.

So for an English speaker, the basic order here is actually quite familiar.

Yes, it is understandable and fairly natural, especially in a general or motivational sense.

It suggests something like:

• athletes need toughness
• players have to put up with pain
• pain is part of the job

That said, depending on style, a speaker might also say:

• Cầu thủ phải chịu được đau.
• Cầu thủ phải chịu đau đớn.
• Cầu thủ phải biết chịu đau.

These alternatives can add slightly different nuances:

• chịu được đau = be able to withstand pain
• chịu đau đớn = endure pain/suffering
• biết chịu đau = know how to endure pain / be tough enough to endure pain

But Cầu thủ phải chịu đau itself is perfectly understandable.

Not necessarily.

This sentence is more about general necessity than about a specific moment. It usually means something like:

• being a player requires toughness
• a player must be prepared to endure pain

So it does not automatically mean:

• the player is hurting right now

Instead, it sounds more like a general truth, expectation, or rule.

If you wanted to make it clearly about the present situation, Vietnamese would usually add more context.

Vietnamese often leaves tense unmarked when the meaning is clear from context.

So Cầu thủ phải chịu đau can be understood as a general statement without any tense word.

If needed, Vietnamese can add time words such as:

• đã = past
• đang = ongoing
• sẽ = future

For example:

• Cầu thủ đã phải chịu đau. = The player had to endure pain.
• Cầu thủ đang phải chịu đau. = The player is having to endure pain.
• Cầu thủ sẽ phải chịu đau. = The player will have to endure pain.

But in the original sentence, no time reference is given, so it reads like a general statement.

A rough pronunciation guide for English speakers is:

• Cầu ≈ like guhw with a dipping-rising tone
• thủ ≈ a bit like thoo with a falling-rising tone
• phải ≈ like fai with a dipping-rising tone
• chịu ≈ roughly chee-oo with tones
• đau ≈ roughly zow in northern Vietnamese, with a level tone

A few important pronunciation notes:

• th in Vietnamese is an aspirated t sound, not English th
• ph is pronounced like f
• đ is pronounced like English d
• chịu contains the sound ch plus a gliding vowel
• tones matter a lot, so it is best to learn them from audio

If you want, I can also give you a more detailed tone-by-tone pronunciation breakdown.