Vietnam’s U19 women football team enjoyed its first victory after defeating Malaysia 2-1 in the first qualifying round of Group E at the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U19 Women’s Championship, held in Hanoi on October 24.

Vietnam’s U19 women celebrate their first victory at the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U19 Women’s Championship. (Source: thethao247.vn)

Tipped as the favourites, Vietnam piled on the pressure from the opening whistle.

Surprisingly, Malaysia scored the first goal in the middle of the first half after a counter-attack from the right corner of the field.

Vietnam ended the first half in confusion. However, at the 59th minute, receiving a pass, Tuyet Ngan overtook her rival and aimed high, equalising for Vietnam.

Feeling fresh motivation, Vietnam went on the attack and found a winner just 10 minutes later. After a pass from the left corner of the field, Nguyen Thi Hoa showed up just in time and scored one more goal for Vietnam.

With this victory, Vietnam had a smooth start in the qualifying round of the tournament.

Speaking at a press conference on October 23, head coach Mai Duc Chung said Vietnam’s women football team is resolved to pass the qualifier round of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U19 Women’s Championship.

Chung said the Vietnamese team consists of young players from 16 to 18 years old, some of whom have participated in international competitions.

He said all teams in Group E are making progress and stated that the Vietnamese players will play with their best in order to advance to the next round.

The qualifiers of Group E is taking place in the capital city of Hanoi from October 24-28 with teams from Jordan, Singapore, Malaysia, and Vietnam competing. Host Vietnam will then play Singapore on October 26, and Jordan on October 28.

The AFC U19 Women’s Championship qualifying round consists of 27 teams, including the hosts of the event’s final round, Thailand. They are pided into six groups and will play in a round-robin format in the group stage to decide winners and two best second-placed teams. The top eight teams of the first qualifier round will progress to the second round, where the four top teams will then advance to the finals, together with Japan, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, China, and Thailand./.

VNF/VNA