Huynh Nhu and HCMC Women's FC: The 4.25 SC Equation and the Quest for Goals in the AFC Women's Champions League

Kuala Lumpur, the football capital of Southeast Asia, has just witnessed a fateful draw. When the name HCMC Women's FC was drawn into Group B alongside Hwacheon KSPO WFC (South Korea), 4.25 SC (North Korea), and East Bengal (India), I was reminded of a number that has haunted me for three years: 0. Not the number of goals in a single match, but the total number of goals the only Vietnamese club with a ticket to the AFC Women's Champions League has scored in two knockout-stage eliminations. 0-2 against Urawa Red Diamonds in 2026, 0-3 against Incheon Hyundai Steel in 2026. Two matches, two defeats, not a single time finding the back of the net. The heat maps of those matches do not lie: HCMC defended with a deep block, but the space between the midfield line and the forward line was wide enough for me to drive a truck through. The question is not whether they will advance from the group stage, but whether they can find the formula to score against teams from Asia's top women's football nations. This draw, with the arrival of 4.25 SC - a team that scored 29 goals in 3 qualifying matches - is testing exactly that inherent weakness. The context of this draw is not simply a routine AFC event. This is the third consecutive season that HCMC Women's FC has appeared in Asia's most prestigious club competition for women's football, an achievement no other Vietnamese women's team has managed. Their journey began in 2026 as national champions, advancing from the group stage to the semi-finals before being eliminated. In 2026, they repeated the feat by reaching the quarter-finals. But looking closely at this trajectory, I see a worrying plateau: semi-finals then quarter-finals, each year a step back, and more importantly, not a single goal in knockout matches. Coach Đoàn Thị Kim Chi's team seems to have hit their own ceiling. They can compete with mid-tier Asian teams, but when facing giants from Japan, South Korea, or North Korea, the invisible wall between defensive capability and attacking efficiency becomes too thick. This time, their group features two debutants in Hwacheon KSPO and 4.25 SC, along with East Bengal - an Indian team on a rapid rise. No Urawa, no Incheon, but in their place are unknowns that are even more frightening. Speaking of 4.25 SC, I cannot help but mention the dominance of North Korean women's football at the continental level. Naegohyang, another North Korean team, won this competition last year, defeating Nippon TV Tokyo Verdy Beleza in the final. That says North Korean women's football is strong not only at the national team level but also at the club level. 4.25 SC, with 29 goals scored and only 1 conceded in 3 qualifying matches, embodies the North Korean football philosophy: high-intensity pressing, superior physicality, and almost absolute tactical discipline. In their match against College of Asian Scholars in the qualifiers, they won 4-1 - the only match where they conceded - showing that even when pressured or falling behind, they have the composure to turn the game around. For a team like HCMC, accustomed to defensive counter-attacking against stronger opponents, facing a high-pressing team like 4.25 SC will be the first and most difficult test of their ability to play out from the back. I recall the Vietnamese women's national team's match against North Korea at the 2026 Asian Cup, where our players repeatedly lost possession in their own half, unable to withstand the pressure. Without a better ball-handling plan, a similar scenario could easily repeat on Indian soil. But if 4.25 SC is the highest peak, then East Bengal is the key to HCMC's advancement ambitions. This Indian team's qualifying record is equally impressive: 18 goals scored, 0 conceded in 3 matches. However, I am always cautious with numbers from qualifying rounds, where opponent quality is often uneven. Evidence: in last year's group stage, East Bengal only managed 3 points and were eliminated in the group stage. This shows the gap between qualifying and group stages is enormous. For HCMC, the match against East Bengal is almost a must-win, not just for the 3 points but also for goal difference - a factor that could determine their advancement as one of the two best third-placed teams. I have watched footage of East Bengal's qualifying matches, and I see a well-organized, disciplined team but one lacking the necessary spark to make a difference against bigger opponents. They are certainly not a weak team, but in a group with 4.25 SC and Hwacheon KSPO, East Bengal is the only opponent HCMC can realistically hope to take all 3 points from. Hwacheon KSPO WFC, the South Korean champions, is another unknown. They come from a league considered one of the strongest in Asia, where teams invest heavily in tactics and physical conditioning. However, making their group-stage debut in the AFC Women's Champions League could be a disadvantage in terms of experience. I have witnessed many teams that are strong domestically but struggle in continental competitions due to a lack of experience handling pressure and differences in time zones and pitch conditions. HCMC, with three consecutive years in the competition, has a clear advantage in experience. But experience does not automatically translate into goals. HCMC's core problem lies in their ability to create chances and convert them against well-organized defenses. 0 goals in 2 knockout matches is a stain that cannot be erased, and it raises questions about Coach Đoàn Thị Kim Chi's tactics in big matches. I want to look deeper into this issue. When analyzing HCMC's heat map in last year's match against Incheon Hyundai Steel, I noticed something interesting: their passes were concentrated mainly in the midfield area, with very few penetrating passes into the opponent's final third. Huỳnh Như, the main striker and the most prominent name in the squad, often had to drop deep to participate in build-up play, leaving the space inside the opponent's box vacant. This creates a paradox: the more players involved in attack, the fewer players are in the right position inside the box to finish. Heat maps do not lie, but they only tell half the story; the other half lies in the spaces. The space between HCMC's midfield and forward lines in big matches is wide enough for me to drive a container ship through. And it is precisely this space that South Korean, Japanese, and North Korean teams exploit relentlessly. To improve, HCMC needs to change their approach to matches. Instead of just defending and waiting for counter-attacking opportunities, they need to be more proactive in controlling the tempo of the game. This requires a central midfielder capable of escaping pressure and making decisive passes. Whether the team has the personnel for this role is a big question. I also want to emphasize the importance of set pieces. In big matches, when open-play opportunities are limited, corners, free kicks, or long throw-ins can become decisive weapons. HCMC needs to maximize the physical advantage of their center-backs in these situations. But have they had specific training for set pieces? I don't have enough data to answer, but looking at the history of 0 goals in knockout matches, I suspect this remains an unaddressed weakness. Another aspect to consider is the psychological factor. Three consecutive years in the competition, two deep runs but failing to score in knockout matches, has certainly created an invisible pressure on the players. Huỳnh Như, at 33, may be entering the final years of her peak career. She has won every domestic honor, has made her mark with the national team, but a continental club title remains the missing piece in her collection. That desire can be a great motivator, but it can also become pressure that robs her of naturalness in her play. I remember the match against Urawa Red Diamonds in 2026, where Huỳnh Như had at least two clear chances but finished indecisively. Was that a sign of a lack of confidence in big matches? I dare not confirm, but it is a question the coaching staff needs to address. Speaking of tactics, I want to offer a contrarian view: perhaps failing to score in knockout matches is not HCMC's biggest problem. The biggest problem may lie in how they defend. When facing stronger teams, HCMC often chooses to defend with numbers, but lacks proactivity in controlling the space behind their defensive line. South Korean and Japanese teams often exploit this space with through balls or intelligent movement from strikers. If HCMC only focuses on improving their attacking ability while neglecting to refine their defensive system, they may pay a heavy price. Balance between attack and defense is key, and this is the hardest puzzle Coach Đoàn Thị Kim Chi must solve in the coming time. The playing conditions in India are also a factor to consider. November, when the group stage takes place, is when Vietnam's domestic season has just ended. Players may be in a state of accumulated fatigue after a long season. Traveling to India, adapting to different weather and pitch conditions will be a significant challenge. I have witnessed many Southeast Asian teams struggle when playing in India due to differences in climate and pitch quality. The coaching staff needs a plan to arrive early, familiarize themselves with local conditions, and have contingency plans for unexpected situations. Looking at the overall picture, I believe HCMC's chances of advancing are not small, but the path will be very thorny. They need to beat East Bengal, and need at least one favorable result against Hwacheon KSPO or 4.25 SC. With a history of advancing from the group stage in 2 out of 2 participations, I believe they have the mettle to do it. But if the problem of scoring against strong opponents is not solved, everything could collapse right in the group stage. The St. Petersburg night in 2026 taught me that tactics is the art of asking questions, not the art of drawing arrows. And the biggest question right now for HCMC Women's FC is: what will they do to change the history of 0 goals against Asia's giants? The answer will come in November, on Indian soil, where all theories will be tested by the harshest reality.