Winning all matches in the group stage, Vietnam women's team wins ticket to Asian Cup 2018

Coach Mai Duc Chung and his team defeated Myanmar 2-0, topping Group D with 12 absolute points. The team won a ticket to the 2018 Asian Cup finals, where they will compete for the right to attend the World Cup.

Vietnam women's team (in white) competes against Myanmar. Photo: Ngoc Dung

Vietnam and Myanmar both have nine points after facing Syria, Iran and Singapore, so the match between the two teams is the "final" of Group D. Due to the superior goal difference, coach Mai Duc Chung and his team only need a draw to win the top spot in the group and secure a ticket to the 2018 Asian Cup finals.

With the advantage, the Vietnamese women's team started the match cautiously. The home team focused on defense, waiting for the opponent to raise their formation and make a mistake so they could launch a counterattack to finish off the opponent. During the first half, the Vietnamese women's defense only made one mistake, allowing the opponent to open the score. However, the crossbar saved the team of coach Mai Duc Chung after a shot in a one-on-one situation with Lo Wer Phaw goalkeeper Kieu Trinh.

Like the previous three matches, the Vietnamese team attacked with wing attacks. In the last 15 minutes of the first half, the home team had two very favorable crosses from the left wing, but Hai Yen missed her header when facing the opposing goalkeeper and Huynh Nhu's shot missed the goal by a hair.

In the second half, the Vietnamese women's team unexpectedly pushed up their formation to attack first. This surprised Myanmar and the visitors' goal was constantly on alert. Goalkeeper Mya Phu Ngon excellently blocked Vu Thi Nhung's close-range shot in the 46th minute and Huynh Nhu's technical header in the 50th minute. However, in the 54th minute, she still had to pick the ball out of the net.

Tuyet Dung was the hero with the opening goal in the 54th minute. Photo: Ngoc Dung

With the ball right at the 16m50 line, Tuyet Dung surprised everyone by not shooting right away but instead rushing straight into the penalty area. She passed two opposing defenders before kicking. Her first shot hit the post but Tuyet Dung immediately rushed in to score the opening goal.

With nothing left to lose, Myanmar was forced to push up their attack formation. Therefore, the gap behind this team was very large, creating opportunities for the Vietnamese women's team to launch dangerous counterattacks. In the 74th minute, the home team counterattacked quickly, two against two. GoalkeeperMya Phu Ngon fouled Tuyet Dung in the penalty area and the referee immediately blew the whistle for a penalty. However, Huynh Nhu missed the chance to score when her penalty shot went over the bar.

Coach Mai Duc Chung sent Thuy Hang onto the field. This young player continuously made the tired Myanmar defense unstable. And in the 81st minute, she contributed greatly to helping the Vietnamese women's team double the gap when she made a cross to "set the table" for Huynh Nhu to tap the ball in close to score.

The 2-0 victory helped Vietnam top Group D with 12 absolute points after four matches. Coach Mai Duc Chung and his team won a ticket to the final round of the 2018 Asian Cup. If they make it into the top 5 of this tournament, the Vietnamese women's team will have a ticket to the World Cup.

According to VNE