Coach Mai Duc Chung apologizes, admits Vietnam women's team is poor

"I would like to apologize for the result of today's match. This responsibility belongs to me, the head coach," coach Mai Duc Chung said after losing to Uzbekistan in the qualifying round of the women's football event for the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Evaluating the match, coach Mai Duc Chung said that Uzbekistan was not a strong opponent. However, the Vietnamese women's team failed to show their true potential.

Vietnam team 0-1 Uzbekistan.

“Uzbekistan did not play very well. They mainly played long balls and lacked protection, but the Vietnamese players were not ready for second balls. The situation that led to the goal came from such a scenario," commented the head coach of the Vietnamese women's team.

In fact, the Vietnamese team completely dominated their opponents in both halves. However, coach Mai Duc Chung’s players showed haste in handling and coordinating on the opponent’s field. This led to inaccurate plays.

The Vietnamese women's team lost to an opponent rated lower. (Photo: AFC)

Coach Mai Duc Chung analyzed: “It must be admitted that the Vietnamese women's team did not coordinate well. We have better strength than the host team Uzbekistan. The opposing team's players suffered from cramps quite a lot, but the Vietnamese team could not take advantage of that.

In addition, the players did not take advantage of the strength of low passes. Instead, they played high balls, leading to losing the advantage to Uzbekistan, a team that has taller players.

The Vietnamese team coordinated a lot on the two wings but did not pass the ball well. In midfield, the players did not compete fiercely and passed the ball incorrectly. The players need to practice more on ball contact and passing, so that they can be faster and more accurate.

The Vietnamese women's team dominated but could not score. (Photo: VFF)

The only goal conceded by the Vietnamese team came from a loss of concentration in the defense. Khabibullaeva Diyorakhon took advantage of the opportunity, flicking the ball over goalkeeper Tran Thi Kim Thanh to score for Uzbekistan. The Vietnamese team created opportunities but failed to take advantage of them to equalize.

Coach Mai Duc Chung also talked about the refereeing issue, although this was not the main reason why the Vietnamese team lost the match: "The referee did not follow some situations closely. I do not criticize the referee because of the defeat, but there were situations where the Vietnamese women's team should have been awarded a free kick but they were not. There was a situation where the team was fouled but the referee blew the whistle for Uzbekistan. There was even a situation where the Vietnamese women's team should have been awarded a penalty but the referee did not blow the whistle."

Phuong Mai

Source: https://vtc.vn/hlv-mai-duc-chung-xin-loi-thua-nhan-tuyen-nu-viet-nam-kem-ar829916.html