Vietnam stun Thailand to close in on Women’s World Cup berth

Vietnam took a giant step towards their first FIFA Women’s World Cup qualification on Wednesday after clinching a fantastic 2-0 victory over arch-rivals Thailand in the play-off round.

Vietnam have moved very close to the World Cup berth after their convincing triumph against Thailand.
Vietnam have moved very close to the World Cup berth after their convincing triumph against Thailand.

Two first-half goals by Huynh Nhu and Thai Thi Thao gave coach Mai Duc Chung’s side a big advantage into the decisive clash against Chinese Taipei, scheduled for February 6.

Vietnam started the match better and cruised ahead after 19 minutes, with Hai Yen returning the ball to an unmarked Huynh Nhu who comfortably slotted home to open the scoring.

Thai Thi Thao doubled Vietnam’s lead five minutes later with an unstoppable header from Tuyet Dung’s right-flank cornerkick.

The remainder of the first half continued to see Vietnam’s stormy attacks as Ngan Thi Van Su threatened to extend the gap twice.

Two minutes after halftime, Hai Yen almost added a third goal for Vietnam. She ran onto Huynh Nhu’s through ball and shot past goalkeeper Boonsing. However, her low shot hit the far post.

Huynh Nhu should have completed a double in the 51st minute, but her goal was disallowed due to offside.

With time running out, Vietnam played solidly giving no chance for Thailand to produce any clear-cut threats.

Things became much worse for the Thai team as Kanjanaporn Saenkhun was shown a red card following her foul on Thanh Nha in stoppage time. This mean this centre back will miss Thailand’s meeting with Chinese Taipei in two days’ time.

A victory against Chinese Taipei on February 6 will put coach Mai Duc Chung’s Vietnamese side through to the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup.