Taiwan is back on track to qualify for the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup after a 3-0 win against Thailand in the playoffs Friday.
A draw against Vietnam on Sunday will now be enough for Taiwan to secure an automatic berth for Australia & New Zealand.
Taiwan were given a second chance to automatically qualify for the World Cup after being dealt a blow Sunday when the Philippines defeated the country 4-3 on penalty kicks.
The two sides played out a 1-1 draw in regular time of the quarterfinal at the AFC Women’s Asian Cup, which is being played in India in a bubble.
The four semifinalists and the top spot in the round-robin playoffs, which will be either Taiwan or Vietnam, will decide which sides get the total of five automatic 2023 Women’s World Cup spots up for grabs at the Asian Cup.
The teams that have already qualified for the World Cup by making it into the semifinals are China, South Korea, Japan, and the Philippines.
With both teams now sitting on three points after defeating Thailand in the round-robin playoffs, Taiwan will face Vietnam Sunday at D.Y. Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai.
Taiwan will have a slight advantage over Vietnam by virtue of leading on goal difference following Vietnam’s 2-0 victory over Thailand. The extra goal means Taiwan will advance to the World Cup if it wins or draws against Vietnam.
On Friday, Thailand played attacking football from the start, registering 60.7 possession in the first half against Taiwan’s 39.3.
However, it was Taiwan forward Su Yu-hsuan (???) who opened the scoring in the final seconds of the first half, collecting a through pass from teammate Wu Kai-ching (???) and curling a shot past the outstretched hands of Thailand goalkeeper Chotmanee Thongmongkol.
After the break, Thailand again set the pace, but Taiwan remained comfortable off the ball, securing a second goal against the run of play after Su collected a pass from Wu in the 84th minute and threaded it over the top of Thongmongkol and into the back of the net.
Taiwan made it 3-0 in stoppage time with the last kick of the match, with midfielder Chen Ying-hui (???) blasting home a free-kick from some 30 yards out.
Speaking with the press after the match, Su said her team had placed importance on defensive structure and that the team had left it all on the field to secure a comfortable victory.
“We will have a good offense if we defend well,” Su said. “We achieved the goals we set to get the results we wanted.”
Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel