Losing to Australia, Vietnam women's team missed the 2025 AFF Cup final
Despite playing resiliently and scoring a goal late in the match, the Vietnamese women's team still lost to Australia in the semi-finals of the 2025 Southeast Asian Women's Football Championship.
On the evening of August 16, the Vietnam Women's Team entered the second semi-final match of the 2025 Southeast Asian Women's Football Championship against the Australian U23 Women's Team at Lach Tray Stadium. Although they only brought a young squad, the opponent still possessed superior physique and powerful playing style, causing many difficulties for coach Mai Duc Chung's students right from the first minutes.
In the 6th minute, from a cross from the right wing, Aideen Keane chose the right spot to head the ball into Kim Thanh's net, opening the score for the Australian U23 women's team. The high ball continued to be a dangerous weapon for the away team. In the 17th minute, the gap was doubled after McKenna's powerful long-range shot left goalkeeper Kim Thanh unable to react.
In the rest of the first half, the Vietnamese women's team tried to find opportunities but the midfield seemed to be inferior to the strength and technique of the opponent.
The first half ended with a 2-0 advantage for Australia U23 women.
Entering the second half, the ball mainly rolled in the midfield area, the Vietnamese women's team fiercely fought with the other team when launching attacks. In the 69th minute, Bich Thuy fell in the penalty area after colliding with the opponent's goalkeeper, but after consulting VAR, the referee did not award the red team a penalty.
The tireless efforts were finally rewarded in the 88th minute. Bich Thuy deftly dribbled past the opponent and then fired a shot from a tight angle, narrowing the score to 1-2, lighting up hope for the Vietnamese women's team. However, the remaining time was not enough for coach Mai Duc Chung and his team to create a comeback.
In the end, the Vietnamese women's team lost 1-2 to the Australian U23 women's team, missing the final match of the 2025 Southeast Asian Championship. Huynh Nhu and her teammates will enter the third-place match against Thailand at 4:30 p.m. on August 19./.
