Hoang Thi Loan: 'We did not follow the tactics in the Portugal match'
"After the Portugal match, we feel very sad," Loan shared before today's training session on July 28, a day after the loss to Portugal and the end of the chance to continue in the 2023 World Cup. The team tried very hard, but because of a few unprepared situations, the team had to concede an unworthy goal. The team did not follow the correct method given by the head coach."
Undervalued both in terms of body and class, but the Vietnamese players suddenly pushed the offensive line up right after the opening whistle on the Waikato field. Before the match, many experts expect the team to be able to make a mark against Portugal - the opponent with the same World Cup for the first time. However, this approach caused the team not to keep the distance of the formation, leaving plenty of space behind, creating opportunities for Portugal to counter-attack and score twice in the 7th and 21st minutes.
After the match, coach Mai Duc Chung publicly blamed the students. He said that they thought "it can be eaten, so they rushed to attack" and said that this thought came from only losing to the defending champion USA 0-3 in the opening match. The 72-year-old military leader said before that he still considered Portugal stronger, so he wanted to learn a solid defensive game first, then wait for the opportunity to counterattack.
"We are very hungry to have a goal, so we are in a hurry," added Hoang Thi Loan. "The early attack and promotion made the team reveal a hole for the opponent to counter-attack. Each individual as well as the whole Portuguese team was very strong and fast, so the Vietnamese defender could not resist, leading to the unfortunate goals. Personally, I am not satisfied with myself because I can't keep up with the opponent."
Today Vietnam moves from Hamilton to Auckland. Coach Mai Duc Chung therefore changed the training schedule from morning to afternoon. The team has been eliminated but has a match against the runner-up Netherlands on August 1. "We will continue to work hard in the last match of the World Cup, with the highest fighting spirit. I think the coaching staff will calculate to have a suitable squad to play against the Netherlands, aiming to guide to good results", Hoang Thi Loan expressed determination.
The Netherlands have the same four points as the US, but are second due to a poor goal difference (one against three). Coach Andries Jonker and the players all vowed to try to score as many goals as possible against Vietnam to race the difference with the US, in order to occupy the top of the table.
