Indian media warns home team about the strength of the Vietnam national team

Indian press assesses the Vietnamese women's team as superior and predicts the home side will face immense difficulties in their opening match of the 2026 Asian Cup.

According to an evaluation by Khel Now (India), the Vietnamese women's team is positioned slightly above the host nation in Group C ahead of the 2026 Women's Asian Cup opener. Indian media acknowledges this will be an enormous challenge for the "Blue Tigresses" as they must face one of Asia's most experienced and resilient squads right from the first match.

Analyzing the match's dynamics, Khel Now writes: "The first match for the 'Blue Tigresses' will be a challenging encounter against Vietnam in the group stage opener; India needs to prepare thoroughly for a game predicted to be very tough against one of Asia's strongest teams.". The article states the Vietnamese women's team enters the tournament with high confidence after demonstrating dominant strength in the qualifiers.

"Currently, the Vietnamese women's team is ranked 36th in the FIFA rankings and has considerable experience in this tournament. They are aiming for a deep run in the AFC Women's Asian Cup 2026 and will seek to start their campaign with a commanding victory over the Indian team.". According to this assessment, the balance of control in the match leans towards the side in red.

Looking back at history, the Indian newspaper also mentions: "Vietnam's best performance in the Women's Asian Cup was in 2022, when they reached the quarter-finals! The Golden Star Warriors women's team has also qualified for the Women's World Cup once, in 2023 – although they were eliminated in the group stage.". Furthermore, the Vietnamese women's team has won the Southeast Asian championship multiple times and holds 8 SEA Games gold medals, demonstrating a solid record of sustained achievement.

Regarding technical preparation, Khel Now highlights the number of matches the Vietnamese women's team has played in 2025, with 23 appearances and 15 victories, including impressive results against Maldives, UAE, and Guam in the qualifiers. This is seen as a foundation helping the team maintain stable form ahead of the major tournament.

Predicting the upcoming match scenario, this media outlet assesses: "The Vietnamese team is likely to adopt an attacking approach, utilizing intelligent combination play and the speed of their forwards to penetrate key areas.". The 2026 Women's Asian Cup takes place from March 1 to 21 in Australia, where the top six performing teams will earn qualification for the 2027 Women's World Cup in Brazil – a goal the Vietnamese women's team is determined to achieve.