On March 1, Ho Chi Minh City Women's Football Club officially announced American rookie Aubrey Goodwill. This is a quality contract for the HCMC women's team towards the quarter-finals of the AFC Champions League for Asian women (Asian Women's Cup C1). Goodwill also had 2 practice sessions to get acquainted with the new team.
Commenting on this rookie, coach Kim Chi shared: "We have only had 2 training sessions with her, so we have not been able to make an accurate assessment. We need to wait for the friendly matches to have a clearer view. However, I see her in good technique, her judgment and her competitive spirit are very high. I hope she will quickly grasp the team's playing style to best support the defense".
In addition to Aubrey Goodwill, coach Kim Chi revealed that there is another foreign player preparing to join the HCMC women's team. This player is completing international transfer procedures (ITC). If everything goes well, the new player from Ho Chi Minh City will arrive in Vietnam this week.
Regarding the difficulties in finding foreign players, coach Kim Chi said: "We have encountered many obstacles in recruiting foreign players. Initially, the team's plan was to recruit 3 foreign players for key positions, but in the end, one of them, a overseas Vietnamese player, could not join for personal reasons. Therefore, we are still looking for additional additions. If we cannot find more foreign players, we will try our best to promote the strength of domestic players".
In the 2024-2025 Asian Women's C1 group stage, with the participation of 3 foreign players Tatiana Mason, Talani Barnet and Meghan Root, Ho Chi Minh City ranked 2nd and won a ticket to the quarter-finals.
However, the continental tournament took place for a long time while domestic tournaments did not allow the use of foreign players, causing the Ho Chi Minh City women's club to part ways and search for foreign players in each stage.
"The foreign players have previously had contracts with other teams, so it is difficult to convince them to join at this time. Part of the reason is because domestic tournaments do not allow the use of foreign players, and if the team does not have a good result in the quarter-finals, they will only play one match, making negotiations difficult. This is not a salary issue but a long wait time to move to another team," coach Kim Chi added.
Ho Chi Minh City Club will continue to maintain training and coaching to prepare for the match against Abu Dhabi Country (UAE) on March 22. The team from the city named after Uncle Ho aims to win a ticket to the semi-finals of the 2024-2025 AFC Women's Cup.
