Specifically, AFC said: "Vietnam is aiming for a first 2023 Women's World Cup final thanks to its impressive performance at the 2022 Asian tournament. Coach Mai Duc Chung and his team have made history. Coach Mai Duc Chung also affirmed that they "will not set high ambitions" in their first participation in the tournament, but emphasized that they are not afraid".

"The brightest star of the Vietnam team is striker Huynh Nhu, who last year became the first Vietnamese female player to play for a professional club in Europe. She plays for Portuguese club Lank FC," AFC wrote.

Vietnam women's team plays friendly match with Spain women's team. Photo: VFF

Despite acknowledging the progress of Vietnamese football, AFC also expressed concern for coach Mai Duc Chung's team when they fell into a very difficult group with the US women's team (reigning champion, ranked 1st in FIFA), the Netherlands (reigning runner-up, ranked 9th in FIFA), and Portugal (ranked 21st in FIFA).

Regarding the opening match against the defending champions, the AFC warned: "The opening match against the defending champions is a difficult prospect. The Vietnamese team will certainly hope to avoid what happened to the Thai team. In France 2019, Thailand lost 0-13 to the US in the opening match."

Therefore, coach Mai Duc Chung and his team are also facing the risk of losing heavily in this match. But above all, the red team needs to show determination, confidence and desire, playing their best in their first time playing in the World Cup.

According to the schedule, the Vietnamese women's team will meet the US women's team at 8:00 a.m. on July 22 (Vietnam time). After that, the Vietnamese women's team will face the Portuguese women's team at 2:30 p.m. on July 27 and finally compete with the Netherlands women's team at 2:00 p.m. on August 1.

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TUAN DIEP (according to AFC)