Thailand runs out of opportunities to attend the 2023 Women's World Cup

Previously, Thailand lost to Taiwan (China) and Vietnam in the play-off of the 2022 Asian Cup, thereby losing the ticket to the 2023 World Cup to Vietnam. The team continued to have more opportunities, but had to face a strong team from Cameroon.

With a much better physical and technical background, the African representative easily controlled the game against Thailand. But it was not until the 41st minute that Gabriel Zabo's teachers and students had a clear chance. The Thai defense made a mistake for the Cameroonian player to steal the ball, No. 13 Charlene Meyong took the opportunity to hit the bar.

In the second half, Cameroon continued to dominate and had more chances from captain striker Ajara Nchout's shot. However, it was not until the 74th minute, when coach Zabo launched the number 7 Gabrielle Onguene on the field, the African representative could create a mutation.

Five minutes after entering the field, Onguene was in the right position to cushion the ball into an empty net after captain Nchout's clear pass. Two minutes later, she handled calmly in front of the penalty area, tricked a Thai defender and then shot diagonally, sending the ball lightly but dangerously enough to double the lead.

Two consecutive goals made Thailand almost collapse, and did not create any significant opportunities for the rest of the time. However, Cameroon still suffered losses when goalkeeper Ange Bawou made the mistake of receiving a direct red card when illegally intercepting a Thai player outside the penalty area.

This loss caused Thailand to miss the 2023 Women's World Cup after attending the previous two consecutive times. And Cameroon will face a bigger challenge than Portugal in the play-off final of Group A on February 22. The opponent from Europe has just had an impressive 5-0 victory over the host New Zealand in a friendly match yesterday 17/2.

The winning team in this match will enter Group E in the final round to meet the only Southeast Asian representative Vietnam, the defending champion of the US and the runner-up of the Netherlands. The 2023 World Cup, which takes place from July 20 to August 20 in Australia and New Zealand, is the first time it has increased from 24 to 32 participating teams.