Coach Mai Duc Chung: 'It's harder to win against Guam than against the two previous teams'

Vietnam women's national team head coach Mai Duc Chung was pleased with his players' performance against Guam, an opponent with superior physique and strength, in the match on the evening of July 5th.

Coach Mai Duc Chung still has many concerns about the future of the Vietnamese women's national team - Photo: ANH DUC

At Viet Tri Stadium, the Vietnamese women's national team defeated Guam 4-0 in the final match of Group E in the 2026 Asian Women's Cup qualifiers, thereby securing a place in the finals in Australia with a perfect record.

"I'm pleased with my players because Guam is not an easy opponent. They have superior stature and strength. Playing against Guam is much harder to win than against the other two teams (Maldives and UAE)," Coach Mai Duc Chung shared at the post-match press conference.

He continued his analysis of the match tactics: "I'm also pleased with the gameplay. The players were able to play cohesively, coordinate in triangles, and shift to the flanks instead of playing long balls. From those things, we scored four goals."

Thus, three consecutive victories against Maldives, UAE, and Guam helped the Vietnamese women's national team achieve their goal of qualifying for the 2026 Women's Asian Cup finals. This also serves as a qualifying round for the 2027 Women's World Cup finals.

Speaking about the possibility of qualifying for the World Cup for the second time in history, coach Mai Duc Chung said he couldn't make any predictions, but he didn't deny that this is not only his aspiration but also that of his players.

The obstacle for the Vietnamese women's team is that they still rely heavily on veteran players. That's why the squad list for the qualifying rounds still includes relatively few contributions from young players.

"The young male players haven't even reached the national team level yet, let alone us women. The veterans have played together for a very long time to get to this point; it's a process of perseverance, long-term commitment, and hard work. We need to be patient," Coach Mai Duc Chung analyzed.

On the Guam women's team's side, head coach Kimberly Sherman said that the match against Vietnam provided her and her players with many valuable lessons.

"The Vietnamese women's team is a very experienced opponent. I am proud of my players. The whole team worked hard and learned many lessons. Although we lack opportunities for more practice, we learned a lot from this match. We will come back stronger and not stop here," said Sherman.

NGOC LE

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/hlv-mai-duc-chung-da-voi-guam-kho-thang-hon-2-doi-truoc-20250705220106281.htm