AFC sends congratulatory letter to Vietnam U20 women; Arsenal receives bad news from Kai Havertz

AFC sends congratulatory letter to Vietnam U20 women's team entering 2026 AFC U20 Championship

The Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) said that the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has just sent a letter of congratulations to the Vietnam U20 women's team after winning first place in Group B in the qualifying round and officially entering the 2026 AFC U20 Women's Finals.

In the letter, AFC emphasized the determination and dedication of the Vietnamese U20 women's players, which were clearly demonstrated through the qualifying matches, contributing to the impressive achievements of Vietnamese youth women's football.

In addition to the congratulations, AFC would like to send sincere thanks to VFF and the local organizing committee for successfully organizing the qualifying round of Group B from August 6 to 10 in Hanoi.

AFC highly appreciates the dedication, professional working spirit and careful preparation in organizing and operating the tournament, as well as the warm welcome given to the AFC officials and participating teams.

At the end of the letter, AFC once again wished the Vietnam U20 women's team continued success and see them again at the AFC U20 Women's Championship in April 2026 in Thailand.

In the 2026 AFC U20 Women's Championship qualifiers, the Vietnam U20 women's team will compete in Hanoi with opponents Kyrgyzstan, Hong Kong (China) and Singapore in Group B.

After 3 matches, coach Okiyama Masahiki and his team defeated Singapore 5-0, Hong Kong (China) 6-0 and Kyrgyzstan 3-0. This result helped the U20 women's team of Vietnam achieve 9 absolute points, winning the top spot in the group and becoming the only representative of the group to enter the final round.

The 2026 AFC U20 Women's Championship will take place from April 1 to 18, 2026. The four teams with the best results in the 2026 AFC U20 Women's Championship will represent Asia at the 2026 FIFA U20 Women's World Cup held in Poland.

Vietnam women's volleyball team encounters problems before world tournament

According to schedule, after leaving Noi Bai airport for Bangkok, the Vietnamese women's volleyball team will continue to connect to Phuket - where the 2025 world championship will take place.

However, due to the delay in the flight from Suvarnabhumi Airport (Bangkok) to Phuket, the Vietnamese women's volleyball team did not arrive at the headquarters in Phuket until the evening of August 20. In total, the travel and waiting time took Thanh Thuy and her teammates about 12 hours.

This incident has more or less exhausted the coaching staff and athletes. However, everyone must overcome it to have the best preparation for the upcoming world tournament.

According to the plan, the Vietnamese women's volleyball team will have at least 2 practice sessions before the opening match against Poland, on August 23. Facing a very strong opponent ranked 3rd in the world rankings, the goal of coach Nguyen Tuan Kiet and his team is to learn, compete, and compete with all their might.

General Secretary of the Vietnam Volleyball Federation (VFV) Le Tri Truong said that the Vietnamese women's volleyball team does not place too much emphasis on performance targets in their first participation in the world arena. The team sees this tournament in Thailand as an opportunity to best prepare for the 33rd SEA Games later this year with the goal of winning a gold medal.

The issue that many people are interested in is who will replace Bich Tuyen in the opposite setter position, after the 2000-born hitter withdrew. Coach Nguyen Tuan Kiet affirmed that he and the coaching staff have the most suitable plan, and hopes that this choice can fully demonstrate its ability at the world tournament.

Hanoi Police Club lost to BG Pathum, Thailand despite having one more player

On the evening of August 20, Hanoi Police Club lost 1-2 to BG Pathum United (Thailand) in the opening match of Group A of the ASEAN Club Championship 2025 - 2026.

Although playing away, Cong An Ha Noi Club surprised everyone with the opening goal in the first half. In the 20th minute, Leo Artur made a pass from midfield, breaking through two layers of BG Pathum players to create a pass for Alan Sebastiao to run down and face the BG Pathum goalkeeper, and the Cong An Ha Noi Club striker did not miss the opportunity to put his team ahead.

After this goal, Hanoi Police Club continued to be excited and had a few more chances to threaten the home team's goal in the first half but could not take advantage. The most regrettable was Le Van Do's close-range shot that hit the opposing goalkeeper in the 31st minute.

Already behind, BG Pathum faced more difficulties when striker Matheus Fornazari received a red card in the 43rd minute after he kicked straight into Bui Hoang Viet Anh's face during an aerial dispute.

In the second half, BG Pathum sent Thai star Chanathip Songkrasin onto the field to replace Ekanit Panya. The player nicknamed "Thai Messi" immediately showed his class by equalizing the score.

In the 58th minute, Chanathip ran up from home field to coordinate a counter-attack on the right wing. He handled the ball very basically with a turn and shot with his left foot, but still easily eliminated center-back Adou Minh and defeated goalkeeper Nguyen Filip to bring home the 1-1 goal.

Despite playing with one less player, BG Pathum still caused a lot of trouble for Hanoi Police Club. They organized tightly on the defensive front, waiting for the opportunity to attack quickly and accurately on counter-attacks.

In the 90+7 minute, after an unsuccessful attack by the Hanoi Police Club, BG Pathum struck the finishing blow. Chanathip had the ball in the middle of the field, saw Nguyen Filip coming up high, he shot straight towards the goal and made the Vietnamese goalkeeper fly helplessly, sealing the 2-1 victory.

Arsenal received bad news from Kai Havertz

Arsenal have received bad news from star Kai Havertz, as the German player will be sidelined for a while due to a knee injury.

Havertz did not take part in open training at the Emirates Stadium on Wednesday morning, The Athletic reports. Assessments are still in the early stages, so the extent of the injury is unclear.

Football expert Fabrizio Romano also recently updated the situation of the 26-year-old German player: "Kai Havertz has suffered a knee injury and the Arsenal coaching staff will assess the situation in the next few hours. Arsenal are considering recruiting new players after Havertz's new injury."

Havertz's injury forced Arsenal's board of directors to actively explore the transfer market to strengthen the attack and compensate for the absence of the German star.

New signing Viktor Gyokeres is currently the only striker confirmed fit and available to play in Mikel Arteta's squad. Leandro Trossard, who has just signed a new contract, has also been deployed as a striker despite starting out as a winger.

Gabriel Jesus, a tried and tested option, is still recovering from an anterior cruciate ligament injury suffered in January and is not expected to return for some time.

This is the second injury Havertz has suffered in 2025, after tearing his hamstring at a training camp in Dubai in February. The injury ruled him out for 18 Premier League and Champions League games, before returning as a substitute in Arsenal's final two Premier League games, with midfielder Mikel Merino playing as a No. 9 during that absence.

Havertz came on for Gyokeres early in the second half of Arsenal's Premier League opener on Sunday, which they won 1-0 against Man United at Old Trafford. The German has made 88 appearances for Arsenal since joining from Chelsea in the summer of 2023, scoring 29 goals.

Newcastle could lose a fortune over Isak

Alexander Isak's rebellion to leave could cost Newcastle up to £2.28 million in wages for players who do not play.

According to the Daily Mail, Isak has not joined the team and trained separately since Newcastle returned from their pre-season tour in Asia. The Swedish striker also did not appear in Newcastle's first match of the Premier League season when Newcastle drew 0-0 with Aston Villa on August 16.

With a contract until 2028, Isak currently earns £120,000 a week at St James' Park. If he continues to be out of action until January, Newcastle will have to pay £2.28 million for the player's inactivity. In addition, Newcastle will also find it difficult to sell Isak for the desired £150 million.

Under the rules, a club can fine a player up to two weeks' wages for a first serious offence, and four weeks' wages for subsequent offences within 12 months. However, it is unclear whether Isak's actions are serious enough to warrant a fine from the Magpies under this rule.

In a statement on Instagram on the evening of August 19, Isak shared: "Promises were broken and the club has known my position for a long time. When promises are broken and trust is lost, the relationship cannot continue. That is where I stand at the moment."

In response, Newcastle insisted the Swedish striker is still under contract and has never made any commitment to allow him to leave this summer.