1:30 p.m. today, October 4, the match against North Korea in Group E, the second qualifying round of the 19th Asian Games, is very important for the Vietnamese women's volleyball team.
Vietnam women's volleyball team aims to enter the semi-finals of Asiad for the first time - Photo: D.KHUE
The fact that Vietnam won both matches against Nepal and South Korea in the first qualifying round and topped Group C gives Vietnam a huge advantage in the second qualifying round.
Historic opportunity
According to the previous group division, the first and second place teams of Group C in the first qualifying round will be in Group E, along with the first and second place teams of Group A, China and North Korea, in the second qualifying round. According to the regulations, the results between the teams that played each other in the first qualifying round will be counted in the second qualifying round.
In other words, although Vietnam did not have to play a rematch with South Korea, it was still counted as a win. Similarly, host China also entered the second qualifying round with the capital of a win against North Korea.
This is a big advantage for coach Nguyen Tuan Kiet's team. Accordingly, just a victory in round 2 against North Korea will open up the opportunity to enter the semi-finals for the Vietnamese team.
The path of the Vietnamese team at the 19th Asian Games is quite similar to the 2023 Asian Women's Volleyball Championship not long ago. At that time, the Vietnamese team also defeated Korea in the first qualifying round and then had an advantage in the second qualifying round. And from there, the Vietnamese girls entered the group of 4 strongest teams in Asia for the first time.
Don't be subjective.
Because the host team China is very strong, the Vietnamese team will focus all their efforts on the match against North Korea. In theory, although the Vietnamese team is rated higher, in reality it will be very difficult to accurately assess the strength of the North Korean team.
Indeed, although North Korean sports have been absent from international competitions for quite a long time, their athletes are still making waves at the 19th Asian Games with many gold medals that they demonstrate absolute dominance.
Specifically in weightlifting, North Korean athletes have continuously broken a series of world records. From this, it can be said that the North Korean opponent is an unknown factor that the Vietnamese women's volleyball team must be highly vigilant of.
Before this important match, coach Nguyen Tuan Kiet and his players went to watch the North Korean team compete with host China in the first qualifying round. From here, the Vietnamese team's coaching staff had some basis to evaluate the opponent.
Coach Nguyen Tuan Kiet said: "China is a very strong team. Therefore, we will focus all our efforts on the match against North Korea. No longer possessing famous Asian stars like before, the current North Korean team is a young squad.
However, they have a very good striker Kim Hyonju. Therefore, we will try to block Kim Hyonju as well as the opponent's attack directions. With a good defense, the Vietnamese team will have a reasonable strategy against North Korea."
Tuoitre.vn
Comment (0)