'Whether Thailand or Vietnam reaches the final, the championship should belong to Australia'

That is the notable opinion of coach Nguyen Dinh Hoang after the semifinal match against the Thai futsal team on the afternoon of February 28.

The Vietnamese futsal team lost 2-4 to Thailand in the Southeast Asian Futsal Championship semifinal, and will therefore compete against Indonesia in the third-place match, scheduled for March 2.

Sharing at the post-match press conference, coach Nguyen Dinh Hoang of the red-shirted team made some noteworthy comments. Specifically, according to the Vietnamese strategist, Australia is the team deserving to win the championship in this year's tournament.

"Whether Thailand or Vietnam reaches the final, the championship should still belong to Australia," the official Thai Futsal page reported.

"Whether the Vietnamese or Thai team makes it to the final, I believe the champion should be Australia. Although this is their first time participating in this tournament, they have hardly faced any formidable opponents," Coach Nguyen Dinh Hoang emphasized.

Speaking further about the reasons for the loss against the host team, Coach Dinh Hoang shared: "First, I want to congratulate the Thai national team. I admit it was a difficult match, even though Vietnam taking an early lead was a very good opportunity. However, the turning point came in the second half when we introduced new players, and some key players suffered injuries.

As for the Thai futsal team, I think they have their own strengths. Similar to many other teams with distinct characteristics, Thailand possesses an excellent defense and consistently capitalizes well on scoring opportunities."

Schedule for the 2026 Southeast Asian Women's Futsal Third-Place Match and Final

- 3:00 PM, March 2 - Third-Place Match: Vietnam vs Indonesia

- 6:30 PM, March 2 - Final: Thailand vs Australia