Coach Mai Duc Chung: 'I am very satisfied with the fighting spirit of the Vietnamese women's team players'

Speaking at the press conference after the match, coach Mai Duc Chung shared: "Congratulations to the Dutch women's team, you played well, you are better than us, congratulations on reaching the round of 16.

The Vietnamese women's team cannot be compared to them, we are helpless. The players' spirit was high today but it could not make up for the inferiority in skills, we truly deserved to lose.

We have prepared for the World Cup for more than a year, the VFF has created conditions for us to compete and improve, but we still have to work harder to overcome our professional shortcomings. On behalf of the whole team, I would like to thank the fans at home and abroad who have supported the team in the past matches."

Talking about the match result, coach Mai Duc Chung said: "With the level of the Vietnamese women's team playing against the Netherlands, losing like that is normal. We are comfortable, not too pressured because we are inferior in terms of level.

The whole team also tried very hard. I also hope that the group E team, the US or the Netherlands, will make it to the final, to show that we deserved to lose to them."

"I am very satisfied with the fighting spirit of the female players. However, conceding 12 goals in the last 3 matches, it is clear that the team's level is still low. The efforts in the past time are wonderful.

Thank you VFF for creating conditions for the players to have training matches before the World Cup, gain experience to achieve the same results as in the group stage. If there was no training session before the tournament, the 3 group stage matches would have been worse. We still have many issues to consider for the future.

When returning to Vietnam, players need to set an example for young players to strive to practice, encourage players to improve in many aspects such as increasing height, practicing in environments like schools. Many grassroots tournaments need to be organized, I think having only 5-6 clubs is still inadequate for women's football," coach Mai Duc Chung gave a general assessment of the entire team at the 2023 World Cup.

Regarding Thuy Trang's case of not playing in the 2023 World Cup, coach Mai Duc Chung explained: "I really want to put her on the field. When I went to the FIFA meeting, I requested that the match be replaced by 6 players, but it was not allowed. I and several teams also requested the same. Women's football is less physically fit than men's, so many players need to be replaced.

For that reason, we have to calculate the substitutions appropriately. Thuy Trang actively practices, is very eager, but is physically weak and old. That makes me cautious. I put the strong positions first, then the reserve players on the field are a worthy reward for each individual."

Finally, regarding the plan after the 2023 World Cup, coach Mai Duc Chung said: "After the World Cup, the players will have a week off, they will return home on August 3 and regroup on August 10, aiming for the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou and the Paris Olympic qualifiers. As for me, I cannot say anything about an extension yet, for now I will work until the end of this year.

I can’t say anything about the future, or whether the Vietnamese women’s team will continue to participate in the World Cup or not. But if I am invited to the World Cup, I will still go because it is both a reward and an encouragement, I am ready to support women’s football better.

FIFA has increased the number of teams participating in the men's World Cup to 48 and hopes that the Vietnamese team will have a chance. I hope that women's football will be an encouragement for the men's team to play better and win a ticket to the 2026 World Cup."