Coach Park Hang Seo and his team received good news from the quarantine room

On June 17, the Vietnam national football team returned home after successfully completing the second qualifying round of the 2022 World Cup in Asia. The entire team was quarantined at a hotel in District 7, Ho Chi Minh City, and the first round of RT-PCR tests were conducted. The good news is that the entire team tested negative for the SARS-CoV-2 virus, allowing the members of the Vietnam national football team to practice with peace of mind and prepare to return home after a 7-day quarantine.

The Vietnamese team was arranged to sit in a separate compartment and wear protective clothing throughout the flight. Photo: VFF

The next round of RT-PCR testing will be on the 6th day of the centralized medical quarantine period according to the recent decision of the Ministry of Health. After the centralized medical quarantine period ends, the team members will continue to be quarantined at their place of residence for the next 7 days and self-monitor their health until the end of 28 days from the date of entry.

To maintain physical strength, at the quarantine hotel, each player is assigned a room with a treadmill/exercise bike to maintain physical strength and health. The daily menu is checked by the team doctor to ensure that nutritional needs are met. Meals are delivered to each team member's room.

The players voluntarily maintain physical training every day. Photo: VFF

Before leaving for the UAE to participate in the 2022 World Cup Qualifiers, the entire team had completed two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine. During the entire competition period in the UAE, the team strictly followed the “bubble” rules established by the AFC. They only lived within the hotel, moved from the hotel to the training ground/competition ground and vice versa, and did not have close contact with anyone outside the “bubble”.

On the flight back to Vietnam, the team was placed in a separate compartment, separated from the group of passengers behind 6 empty rows, wearing protective gear throughout the flight and until arriving at the centralized medical quarantine location.

After completing the centralized medical quarantine period, team members will continue to be quarantined at their place of residence for the next 7 days and self-monitor their health until 28 days from the date of entry.

On July 1, AFC will hold the draw for the final qualifying round of the 2022 World Cup in Asia. Previously, FIFA divided the seed groups for 12 teams, based on the special rankings of June 2021.

Vietnam ranked 11th out of 12 teams that qualified for the third qualifying round of the 2022 World Cup in Asia. Coach Park Hang Seo and his team, along with the 12th-ranked team Lebanon, were in the 6th seed group out of 6 seed groups for the draw.

The 12 teams are divided into 2 groups. The teams will play a round-robin tournament to determine the ranking points in each group. The top 4 teams in the 2 groups will go straight to the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, while the two third-placed teams will compete in a play-off with representatives from another continent.

The matches of the Third Qualifying Round are scheduled to take place on the following dates: September 2, 2021, September 7, 2021, October 7, 2021, October 12, 2021, November 11, 2021, November 16, 2021, January 27, 2022, February 1, 2022, March 24, 2022 and March 29, 2022.