Coach Mai Duc Chung: 'Vietnam's opponents are naturalizing players en masse'

Head coach of the Vietnamese women's team, Mai Duc Chung, admitted difficulties ahead of the 2025 Southeast Asian Women's Championship, where opponents not only improved but also upgraded their squads.

Coach Mai Duc Chung gives instructions to his players before the Vietnamese women's national team's training session on the afternoon of July 18 - Photo: NGOC LE

"The 2025 Southeast Asian Women's Championship will be more challenging than the recent 2026 Asian Women's Championship qualifiers. Opponents like Thailand, Cambodia, and Indonesia have naturalized almost their entire teams," Coach Mai Duc Chung said in a media interview on the afternoon of July 18th.

Mr. Chung added: "Playing against teams like that requires a good physical foundation. We will strengthen our fitness, endurance, and muscles through a training camp in Quang Ninh starting on July 20th."

In the second training session of the year, the Vietnamese women's team will practice in Hanoi from July 13. To have a good physical foundation, in recent days, coach Mai Duc Chung's students have been practicing on the field from 3:40 pm every day, under the 32 degree Celsius temperature (feels like 36 degree Celsius) of the capital Hanoi.

"Despite the very hot and humid weather, the players still showed commendable training spirit. The young players called up to the national team are also progressing quickly. I also told them not to be shy or afraid of being scolded by the senior players. The coaching staff and the whole team are ready for them to play in the starting lineup if they improve and reach a high level of performance," said Coach Mai Duc Chung.

Mr. Chung announced that he had just sent Nguyen Thi Tuyet Ngan (who had undergone appendicitis surgery) back to her family. He also revealed the good news that player Nguyen Thi Thanh Nha may be able to return to training with the team by the end of this week after a period of training separately due to injury.

In Group A of the 2025 Southeast Asian Women's Championship, the Vietnamese women's team will play against Cambodia, Indonesia, and Thailand on August 6-8, 9-8, and 12-8 respectively, all at the Lach Tray Stadium in Hai Phong . The top two teams in the group will advance to the semi-finals.

Huynh Nhu failed to score any goals in 3 qualifying matches for the 2026 Asian Women's Championship - Photo: NGOC LE

Huynh Nhu: 'I'm getting older'

At the age of over 33, striker Huynh Nhu said she is trying to maintain her physical strength to contribute to the Vietnamese women's team.

"For me, the most important thing in every tournament is the team's success. In the recent Asian Women's Championship qualifiers, I was unlucky and didn't score any goals, but my teammates scored, which is a good thing."

As I get older, I need to take better care of my health. I go to bed much earlier now, much earlier than when I was younger. I also eat more carefully and don't drink alcohol.

"I also trained according to a suitable training plan from the coaching staff, which helped me meet the standards," Huynh Nhu said.

NGOC LE

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/hlv-mai-duc-chung-cac-doi-thu-cua-viet-nam-nhap-tich-ao-at-20250718165827855.htm