Coach Mai Duc Chung: "We tried our best, but it was beyond our ability"

Coach Mai Duc Chung at the press conference after losing to Portugal - Photo: TRUNG NGHIA

On the afternoon of July 27, the Vietnamese women's team lost 0-2 to the Portuguese women's team in the second match of Group E of the 2023 Women's World Cup in New Zealand.

Speaking at the press conference after the match, coach Mai Duc Chung congratulated the Portuguese team for a good match. Regarding the Vietnamese women's team, Mr. Chung immediately said: "We had prepared our tactics, but the players were a bit subjective at the beginning of the match. They thought that if they just rushed forward to attack, they would score a goal. Meanwhile, the other team penetrated deep into Vietnam's left wing."

"We should have lost more goals, not just two. The two midfielders were so engrossed in attacking that they didn't mark their opponents, so they were caught off guard. We need to defend more tightly and wait for favorable conditions to attack. In the second half, the Vietnamese team adjusted their formation," Mai Duc Chung analyzed.

The Vietnamese women's team tried but still failed against Portugal - Photo: TRUNG NGHIA

When asked what he said to his players in the locker room between the two halves, coach Mai Duc Chung said: "After the first half, I was not satisfied. I proposed a tight defensive strategy, the two midfielders had to know how to recover the ball well. But they kept speeding up. Meanwhile, we could not get the ball. I shouted very loudly, a lot to retreat to keep the central position. Vietnam was attracted to the opponent's style of play."

What lessons will the Vietnamese women's team learn for the next match against the Netherlands? Coach Mai Duc Chung said: "Vietnam is a young team at the 2023 World Cup. I once said that the Vietnamese team came here to learn and gain experience. We will compete with the US, Portugal and soon the Netherlands, so we will learn a lot. We will gradually improve."

Huynh Nhu takes photos with the audience after the defeat against Portugal - Photo: TRUNG NGHIA

"The other team played better. We tried our best, but we were powerless. I accept responsibility for the loss. At the same time, I will analyze and learn from the experience with my students" - said the head coach of the Vietnamese women's team.

Coach Mai Duc Chung said that this match showed the level of Vietnamese football. Mr. Chung said: "Don't think that losing to the US by a few goals means we are good. The US did not play their best in the first match. Actually, we only played with courage. This is a lesson for Vietnamese women's players to know where they are and what they have to do to meet the requirements. We see that we are still inferior, we need to learn and gain experience."

According to Tuoi Tre