Vietnam team practices in preparation for SEA Games 33 - Photo: VFF
During the 10-day training in Japan, coach Mai Duc Chung and his team will have three friendly matches with teams from the university system in Nagoya, to evaluate the team's performance, coordination ability and tactical adaptation.
Big challenge from the Philippines
At the 33rd SEA Games, the Vietnamese women's team is in Group B, which is quite difficult with the championship candidates Philippines, Myanmar and Malaysia. If the Vietnamese team makes a mistake, it will be even more difficult for them to get a ticket to the semi-finals.
The Philippines, with its naturalization policy, defeated the Vietnamese women's team in the semi-finals of the 2022 Southeast Asian Women's Football Championship (won 4-0) and the group stage of the 32nd SEA Games in Cambodia (won 2-1). Meanwhile, Myanmar is the current SEA Games runner-up and just won the runner-up position at the 2025 Southeast Asian Women's Football Championship in Hai Phong last August.
Preparing for the 33rd SEA Games, the Philippines team will gather on November 23 with 28 players, of which 19 are playing abroad. Notably, 9 are playing in the US and 4 of them are rookies, so they will be unknown for the Vietnamese women's team.
Not to mention star Sarina Bolden has been recalled after a long injury layoff. This American-born striker scored against New Zealand at the 2023 Women's World Cup. She also scored three goals against Vietnam in the Philippines' last two victories.
"We have a strong squad to choose from for the 33rd SEA Games. And we will take advantage of this training session to select the best 23 players. Our goal is to reach the final and bring home a medal. I am really excited about this squad and want to bring pride to the country," coach Mark Torcaso said before the training session.
Valuable training trip in Japan
The Vietnamese women's team has been divided into two training sessions both domestically and abroad. In the latest training session in Viet Tri, coach Mai Duc Chung spent a lot of time with the players coordinating with each other, improving their ability to change positions and perfecting their offensive and defensive tactics. This is also an opportunity for the new recruits and young players to better integrate into the team's overall playing style.
But the training trip to Japan is still the most anticipated. This is the time when the Vietnamese team has enough force to assemble the squad, after six players from the HCMC Women's Club completed the group stage of the 2025-2026 AFC Champions League Women's in HCMC. Three of them are pillars of the Vietnamese women's team: goalkeeper Kim Thanh, center back Thu Thao and striker Huynh Nhu.
In the context of midfielder Chuong Thi Kieu (HCMC Women's Club) having a knee injury and unable to join the training camp, the training trip to Japan is even more important for the Vietnamese team. Coach Mai Duc Chung has called up Kim Yen to replace her. And the three friendly matches in Japan will be an opportunity for him to further test the ability of this 23-year-old midfielder alongside midfielder Cu Thi Huynh Nhu (25 years old).
In the recent 2025-2026 AFC Champions League Women's Group Stage, Kim Yen came on as a substitute for Ho Chi Minh City Women's Club in two matches against Lion City Sailors (Singapore) and Melbourne City (Australia). Last season, Kim Yen even scored against Odisha (India) in the group stage. But finding someone to replace an important stopper like Chuong Thi Kieu is not easy.
"We still have to improve a lot in terms of tactics. SEA Games 33 will be very fierce so the whole team must improve more in each training session," coach Mai Duc Chung admitted.
Source: https://tuoitre.vn/tuyen-nu-viet-nam-luyen-cong-tai-nhat-ban-20251122090923156.htm
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