February 2 – While the semi-finalists in the Women’s Asian Cup have a day before they return to play for a spot in the final, three of the beaten quarter finalists are back in action today, battling for the AFC’s fifth Women’s World Cup 2023 qualifying spot.
Chinese Taipei, Thailand and Vietnam will compete in a round-robin format for the automatic qualification place with Thailand opening the series against Vietnam.
In a tight schedule Thailand then face Chinese Taipei two days later on Fridays with the final match of the series seeing Chinese Taipei play Vietnam on Sunday.
Chinese Taipei start as marginal favourite to win the series having only lost to the Philippines in the quarter finals in the penalty shoot-out.
Chinese Taipei head coach Echigo Kazuo told the AFC.com: “We can’t change what happened,” said Kazuo. “However, after the match against the Philippines, I told the players to switch their focus to the next two games. The players are highly motivated and really want to play in the 2023 World Cup.”
In the group phase Thailand were in the same pool as Philippines, losing 1-0. In the quarter final they were swamped by a rampant Japan, losing 7-0.
Even so, the country has twice appeared at the Women’s World Cup and are keen to participate again.
“Playing the last few matches has been beneficial for our team. If we keep to our game plan and continue our approach, I’m sure we can win,” said Thailand striker Irravadee Markis.
“Even though Thailand have featured in two FIFA World Cups, I’ve never played in one. It’s certainly a good exposure for the team, especially the younger players.”
Vietnam are similarly anxious to keep their run going. In a tough group stage they opened with a 1-1 draw against Myanmar before then defending champions Japan and the emerging South Koreans. They lost both games but showed improvement in both games.
In the semi-final they pushed eight times champions China before losing 3-1.
Vietnam head coach Mai Duc Chung is aware of the challenge for his improving team and what World Cup qualification would mean for the nation.
“Qualifying for the FIFA Women’s World Cup will be a huge achievement for us and Vietnamese football. We’ve had good preparation and the team is ready to do their bes,” said Mai.
“We gained plenty of experience playing against higher ranked teams like Japan and I can only see the players improving.”
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