Vietnam women's volleyball team prepares strategy to face world's third-ranked team; New recruit sets record in Chelsea's 5-1 win

Vietnam women's volleyball team prepares strategy to face world's third-ranked team

The Vietnamese women's volleyball team has two days left to prepare for the opening match at the 2025 World Championship. Recently, coach Nguyen Tuan Kiet said that he and the coaching staff have prepared tactics for the upcoming match with Poland.

Mr. Tuan Kiet shared: "We don't have Bich Tuyen so we have to change the main player. In the opposite setter position, the team has Hoang Thi Kieu Trinh who has been with the team for many years.

Besides, Tran Thi Thanh Thuy, who used to play in the opposite position, could also be an option. Depending on the situation on the field, the coaching staff will use appropriate personnel."

Before that, the whole team was in Phuket (Thailand) to prepare for the opening match of the World Championship. Bich Tuyen's sudden withdrawal on August 19 caused the Vietnamese team to suffer a great loss.

However, Bich Tuyen has her own reasons that need to be understood when making the above decision. At the same time, the sharing of coach Nguyen Tuan Kiet also shows that the Vietnamese women's volleyball team is ready to adapt to compete well at the 2025 world championship.

The 2025 FIVB Volleyball Women's World Championship will take place from August 22 to September 7 in four cities in Thailand: Bangkok, Nakhon Ratchasima, Chiang Mai and Phuket, bringing together 32 of the strongest teams on the planet.

Vietnam is in Group G with strong opponents such as Poland (ranked 3rd in the world), Germany (ranked 11th in the world) and Kenya (ranked 23rd in the world). According to the schedule, coach Nguyen Tuan Kiet and his team will face Poland (August 23), Germany (August 24) and Kenya (August 26).

New signing sets record in Chelsea's 5-1 win

In the early morning of August 23, Chelsea was behind but still crushed West Ham 5-1 away in round 2 of the Premier League.

Chelsea had an explosive performance to win the first victory of the 2025/26 Premier League season. Despite missing their brightest star Cole Palmer due to injury during the warm-up, Enzo Maresca's army still showed their superior strength and spirit.

The match started off tough for the Blues when Lucas Paquetá unexpectedly unleashed a powerful shot from outside the box, opening the scoring for West Ham in the 6th minute. However, the home team's slight advantage was quickly erased. From a corner kick, Marc Cucurella assisted Joao Pedro to score the equalizer.

After that, the game was completely in the hands of the blue team. Pedro Neto took advantage of a mistake by the West Ham defense to volley home a goal to make it 2-1. Young signing Estevao continued to leave his mark when he assisted Enzo Fernandez to score in the 34th minute. According to Opta, Estevao became the youngest player in Premier League history to assist for Chelsea (18 years and 120 days).

In the second half, Chelsea continued to attack with a flurry of attacks. Moisés Caicedo took advantage of a poor save from goalkeeper Hermansen to score the fourth goal. West Ham's desperate defensive efforts ended with Trevoh Chalobah scoring, sealing a 5-1 victory for Chelsea.

This defeat means Graham Potter has continued his “bad streak” of not winning against Chelsea in all 8 matches (4 draws, 4 losses). West Ham also extended their bad start with 2 consecutive defeats, while Chelsea climbed to the top of the rankings, at least for 17 hours.

MU is about to have a new goalkeeper

According to transfer expert Fabrizio Romano, MU and Lammens have almost agreed on personal terms. The "Red Devils" continue to negotiate with Antwerp to complete the deal. Lammens' price is expected to be around 15 million euros.

Lammens personally is ready to join MU. Last month, Lammens admitted: "MU is one of the best clubs in the world. When teams like that come knocking on the door, it means you do something worthwhile. But I always try to keep my feet on the ground."

The 23-year-old goalkeeper has made 65 appearances for Antwerp, has represented Belgium at youth level and was even called up to the senior squad in March, although he has not been used. United have been keeping an eye on Lammens since December and see him as a solution to their goalkeeping crisis.

Andre Onana was absent from the Premier League opening match against Arsenal 0-1 on August 17 due to injury. His replacement, Altay Bayindir, made a mistake allowing Riccardo Calafiori to easily head the ball into the net. The situation made MU even more urgent to add a quality goalkeeper.

Lammens has impressed with his good footwork, excellent reflexes and modern style of play. Statistics show that Lammens averages 24 passes per game in the Belgian league, with nearly 7 accurate long balls.

In addition, Lammens has an average of 4.5 saves per game with a success rate of up to 80%. Therefore, he can soon compete for the starting position at Old Trafford.

Argentine talent creates "fever" at Real Madrid

There are moments in football that are more than just a debut, they are a birth.

Real Madrid's 1-0 win over Osasuna in the first round of La Liga was such a milestone for Franco Mastantuono. With just 28 minutes on the pitch, the 18-year-old Argentinean did what many young stars who have come to the Bernabeu have spent months, even years: conquering the most demanding stadium in the world.

Mastantuono not only has the “rookie aura” but also shows the cool confidence of a player used to pressure. Having grown up at River Plate – a forge full of historical weight – he came to Madrid not with the mindset of a survivor, but as a warrior ready to enter the war.

Argentines are known for their passion and rigor. So when the home press called this debut “historic”, the excitement was not just a fleeting emotion, but also a belief that the “Albiceleste” had just found a new gem, comparable to the legends of the past.

Real Madrid’s history has seen many brilliant debuts and then fades away. But rarely has anyone immediately created a global “fever” after only a few dozen minutes on the field. Mastantuono did it because he came at the right time: when Real Madrid needed a breath of fresh air, when the audience was craving for an idol to cling to in the next generation after Luka Modric, Toni Kroos or Karim Benzema.

A new idol was born not on the benches, but on the green grass. Bernabeu has called Franco Mastantuono. And from now on, the story is no longer “if”, but “when” he will become a real star in the Real Madrid galaxy.