On their home page, FIFA wrote about Vietnam’s number of achievements. The first was their qualification to the 2016 FIFA Futsal World Cup in Colombia – the nation’s first FIFA tournament. The second one was the 2017 FIFA U20 World Cup. And their U23 side began 2018 with a bang, sweeping past the likes of Australia and Iraq, en route to the finals of the Asian championship.

“Now the country’s women’s team has the opportunity to create their own milestone moment. A top-five finish at 2018 AFC Women’s Asian Cup will see the team win with their first ever FIFA Women’s World Cup,” FIFA wrote.

The agency also interviewed head coach Mai Duc Chung, who said: "I do hope our team will qualify. We enter the qualifying competition motivated, and we hope we can go further."

FIFA also talked with midfielder Nguyen Thi Tuyet Dung, who it considered to be a rising star, thanks to her goal-scoring form.

"Our aims are straightforward - to progress to the last four," the midfielder told FIFA.com. "The chances are equal for each team, and we can make it if we show our best."

Vietnam will play their first match against Japan in Group B at Jordan’s Asian Cup on April 7. The team has just finished its intensive training course in Germany, with one win and one draw with the local women’s football club. — VNS