On September 18, the Vietnamese women's team moved from Shizuoka to Osaka after completing the match against the Japanese women's team. Coach Hoang Van Phuc and his team arrived in Osaka after about 4 hours of travel by bus and settled down at the Agora Regency Osaka Sakai hotel.
On the same afternoon, the Vietnamese women's team entered the first training session at J-Green Sakai Center. This is an important training session in helping the coaching staff re-evaluate the players' fitness after the match against Japan, and at the same time adjust the preparation plan for the confrontation with the Thai women's team.
A noteworthy point in the training session is that the coaching staff did not organize the same lesson plan for the whole team. The group of players competing with a large volume was prioritized for recovery, relaxation and fitness recovery exercises. Meanwhile, players who played little or did not play were focused on technical and tactical content, maintaining ball feel and being ready for the next match.
This is a necessary personnel allocation when the Vietnamese women's team only has a few days to prepare for the final group stage match. Ensuring fitness for the key group while maintaining professional intensity with the remaining group of players will help the coaching staff have more personnel options before the Thai women's team.
After two matches, the Vietnamese women's team is currently ranked third in Group E with a goal difference of -9. The Thai women's team is also competing for this position. According to the format of ASIAD 2026 women's football, in addition to the top teams in the group, the third-placed teams with good results will compete for a place in the quarterfinals. Therefore, the match between Vietnam and Thailand has a direct significance for the chances of both teams to advance.
The Thai women's team is also under pressure to achieve positive results. After losing to the Taiwanese (China) women's team 0-1 in the second match, coach Netipong Srithong-in said that his team aims to actively attack against the Vietnamese women's team to seek victory.
For the Vietnamese women's team, the immediate problem is not only the result but also the ability to maintain balance between physical strength and tactics. After the match with the Japanese women's team, the remaining preparation time will be used to restore forces, and at the same time complete the plan for the decisive confrontation.
The match between the Vietnamese women's team and Thailand takes place at 5:30 PM on September 21st at Nagai Stadium, Osaka.
