Football

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam defeated Syria 11-0 in the Group D opening match of the qualifying round of the 2018 AFC Women’s Asian Cup on Wednesday in Hà Nội.

The match was played at the Việt Nam Youth Football Training Centre.

The goals went to Nguyễn Thị Liễu in the first minute and in the first half extra time; Nguyễn Thị Tuyết Dung in the 13rd and 38th minutes; Nguyễn Thị Hòa in the 20th and 90th minutes; Nguyễn Thị Nguyệt in the 17th minute; Phạm Hải Yến in the sixth and 24th; Nguyễn Thị Muôn in the 71st minute; and Nguyễn Thị Thúy Hằng in the 76th minute.

This win has helped Việt Nam temporarily take the lead in the group.

Coach Mai Đức Chung is satisfied with his team’s performance. “The players followed my tactics and played wonderfully to gain three points,” Chung said. “We played fair and played with the right spirit of respecting one’s rivals.”

The team must now focus on the next matches, especially with strong opponents Iran or Myanmar, the coach said.

Though his team lost to Việt Nam, coach Abdul Tatteesh of Syria is happy with his players’ competitive spirit. “I appreciated the team’s efforts in the match. The players tried their best and sometimes controlled the match. We have taken part in this event to show that Syrian people are unyielding yet positive in any circumstances,” Tatteesh said.

Việt Nam will face Singapore at 6pm on April 7.

Việt Nam will be playing against Syria, Singapore, Myanmar and Iran in the group round, which will continue till April 11. The other 16 teams are playing in Group A, Group B and Group C.

The winners of each group will qualify for the finals, which will be held in Jordan. The three highest ranked women’s national teams from last AFC Women’s Asian Cup – Japan, Australia and China – have automatically qualified in the eight-team finals.

The finals, which will be held from April 7 to 22, 2018, will also serve as the Asian qualifiers for the FIFA Women’s World Cup France 2019. The five best teams will book their tickets to Paris. — VNS