Striker Nguyễn Thị Thanh Nhã is expected to shine at the upcoming World Cup. Photo vtc.vn

Women's World Cup

HÀ NỘI — The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has selected striker Nguyễn Thị Thanh Nhã of the Vietnamese women's team as one of six young Asian stars who could have a breakout tournament.

Nhã stood out at the friendly match with Germany in preparation for the World Cup.

“Việt Nam’s preparations for the 2023 World Cup saw them take on World No 2 Germany in a friendly last month. The well-organised Southeast Asians, despite going down 2-1, put on an impressive showing against the formidable opponents and it was Nhã who scored their only goal of that game,” the website the-afc.com said.

“Nhã has been touted as the next big thing in Vietnamese football and was part of the squad as the country qualified for their first-ever World Cup ahead of Thailand and Chinese Taipei. She was also on target as Việt Nam defeated Myanmar 2-0 to win gold in the Southeast Asian Games earlier this year,” the website added.

“Having recently scored against one of the giants of women’s football, the 21-year-old striker will be keen to replicate her performance at the World Cup where Việt Nam are drawn in a tough group featuring two-time defending champions the United States as well as the Netherlands and Portugal.”

In addition to Nhã, in this list, there is another player of Southeast Asian football, that is Isabella Flanigan of the Philippines. Flanigan, 18, is a good choice in attack line next to seniors like Sarina Bolden and Katrina Guillou. She was trained in the US and possesses formidable speed.

The remaining four names selected by the AFC include: 16-year-old Casey Phair of South Korea, Aoba Fujino, 19, of Japan, Shen Mengyu, 21, of China and Mary Fowler, 20 of Australia.

Six young Asian stars to watch at World Cup. Photo AFC

Notably, Casey Phair, who was born in the United States to an American father and a Korean mother, is set to become the first mixed-race player to represent South Korea if she features in the upcoming World Cup where they are pitted against former champions Germany, Morocco and Colombia in the group stage.

Casey Phair’s form for the South Korean U-17s impressed head coach Colin Bell who named her in his hugely experienced World Cup squad despite the teenager not making her senior debut yet. The striker, who could also become the youngest player ever at a FIFA Women’s World Cup, is the joint-top scorer in the 2024 AFC U-17 Women’s Asian Cup qualifiers with five goals. VNS