Huỳnh Như confident, Ho Chi Minh City Club aims to recreate miracle at AFC Champions League

Coach Nguyễn Hồng Phẩm and captain striker Huỳnh Như show their belief that Ho Chi Minh City Women's Club will repeat their feat of advancing to the AFC Champions League semifinals, similar to last season's accomplishment.

At the press conference before the 2025/26 AFC Women's Champions League quarter-final between Naegohyang FC (North Korea) and Ho Chi Minh City Women's Club held in Laos this afternoon on March 27, Coach Nguyễn Hồng Phẩm stated: "This is a very strong opponent, and we hold great respect for them.

However, we also hope our players will be confident and demonstrate all their capabilities. Because this match does not allow a draw, we aim to play our utmost to secure victory."

Regarding the players, captain Huỳnh Như shared: "For us, every match in this tournament is very important. And we always focus on each game.

Last year we reached the semifinals. This season we have set the same goal and aim to go even further."

Naegohyang FC and Ho Chi Minh City Club will have an exciting encounter when they face each other in the quarter-finals of the 2025/26 AFC Women's Champions League at 15:00 tomorrow, March 28, at the national stadium in Vientiane (Laos).

Representing North Korean football, Naegohyang secured a spot in the knockout stage in their first participation, while Ho Chi Minh City Club reached the continental tournament's semifinals last season.

As the first women's club from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea to participate in an AFC competition, Naegohyang will not be overwhelmed by the prospect of facing Ho Chi Minh City Club in the quarter-finals, as they possess an experienced squad with many players who are members of various national teams.

This team demonstrated resilience by overcoming the preliminary round before finishing second in Group C and will be confident about their chance to advance to the semifinals.

Ho Chi Minh City Club will rely on their experience to overcome the opponent from North Korea, as the Vietnamese representative finished second in Group A.

After losing 0-2 to the eventual champion Wuhan Jiangda Women's FC in the semifinals last season, Ho Chi Minh City Club is determined to go as far as possible and will be ready to handle any challenges posed by Naegohyang.