Vietnam women's national team faces elimination risk after Uzbekistan's victory

A decisive win over Bangladesh secured Uzbekistan women's team a spot in the quarter-finals of the 2026 Women's Asian Cup, thereby making Vietnam women's team's chances of advancing more difficult.

The Uzbekistan women's national team officially qualified for the quarter-finals of the 2026 Women's Asian Cup as one of the two best-performing third-place teams, thereby placing significant additional pressure on Vietnam women's team in the race to advance. The results in Group B after the final matchday have made the competitive landscape in Group C more unpredictable for coach Mai Duc Chung and his squad.

In the final matchday of Group B on March 9 afternoon, the Uzbekistan women's team secured a decisive 4-0 victory over Bangladesh. Forward Khabibullaeva shone with a hat-trick, while the remaining goal was scored by Kudratova. Thanks to this win, Uzbekistan concluded the group stage with 3 points and a goal difference of 4 goals scored and 6 goals conceded.

In the other match of the group, the China women's team staged a comeback to defeat North Korea with a 2-1 scoreline. Kim Kyong-Yong opened the scoring for North Korea, but Chen Qiaozhu and Wang Shuang scored successively to secure China's victory. This result placed China at the top of Group B with a perfect 9 points, while North Korea ranked second in the group with 6 points.

With 3 points after the group stage, Uzbekistan ranked third but still qualified for the quarter-finals due to a better performance than the third-place team in Group A, Philippines. Both teams had 3 points and a goal difference of -2, however Uzbekistan scored 4 goals, more than Philippines' 2 goals. Consequently, the Central Asian representative is confirmed to be among the two best-performing third-place teams.

This development has made the situation for Vietnam women's team in Group C more challenging. After two matchdays, coach Mai Duc Chung's squad has 3 points with a goal difference of 2 goals scored and 2 goals conceded. In the final matchday, Vietnam women's team will have to face the championship contender Japan who just secured a decisive 11-0 victory over India.

In that context, Vietnam women's team must avoid a heavy defeat against Japan if they hope to advance as a third-place team. The red-shirted squad can still qualify if they lose by a minimal margin or lose by two goals but still score. However, if they lose by a margin of three goals or more, Vietnam women's team's chances of reaching the quarter-finals will almost certainly be closed.