The Vietnam U20 women's team suffered a heavy defeat against Japan in the opening match of the 2024 AFC U20 Championship. This result was predicted because the team from the land of the rising sun possesses many quality players of outstanding class. These players participated in the 19th ASIAD and defeated the Vietnam women's team with a score of 7-0.
Right after the opening whistle, the Japanese women's team put a lot of pressure on the Vietnamese women's team's field. They did not attack the flanks but coordinated straight into the middle. The Japanese women's players were very skillful and handled well in a narrow area. That caused chaos in the U20 Vietnam defense system.
Goalkeeper Le Thi Thu only kept a clean sheet until the 12th minute. Matsukubo exchanged passes with her teammates in front of the U20 Vietnam team's penalty area before skillfully dribbling, eliminating the last defender to score.
U20 Vietnam faced many difficulties against Japan.
In the 31st minute, Matsukubo unleashed a powerful shot from outside the box, doubling the lead for coach Kano Michihisa's team. The number 10 striker scored a hat-trick in the 44th minute after the ball bounced around in front of the U20 Vietnam goal.
Before the first half ended, U20 Vietnam had a chance to score but Bui Thi Thuong's shot missed the goal in a face-off with the U20 Japan goalkeeper.
In the second half, U20 Vietnam still tried to develop the ball from their home field despite Japan's great pressure. However, the path for the ball to reach the strikers was not easy when the opponent pressed fiercely, blocking all passing directions.
Not only that, the U20 Vietnam defense was helpless against the superior level of the Japanese players. In the 57th minute, Hijikata scored from close range, raising the score to 4-0.
Minutes later, Hijikata, Tsujisawa, Sasaki, Sasai, Yoneda and Shirasawa scored in turn, helping the Japanese U20 team defeat U20 Vietnam with a score of 10-0.
This heavy defeat further narrows the chances of U20 Vietnam advancing. In the next two matches, coach Akira Ijiri and his team will face U20 North Korea and U20 China.
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