The Cambodian national women’s football team has set the goal of earning points at the ASEAN MSIG Serenity Cup 2025, which kicks off tonight in Vietnam.
Meanwhile, the U20 women’s squad is aiming for a strong showing in the opening round of the AFC U20 Women’s Asian Cup 2026 qualifiers, which begin this afternoon in China.
Koji Gyotoku, who was recently appointed head coach of the senior women’s team for the ASEAN tournament, admitted that he has not yet had enough time to fully calculate the strengths and weaknesses of the players, as this is his first time coaching the Cambodian side, and he was only appointed around 10 days ago.
“I’ve only been with the Cambodian women’s team for about 10 days, and this is my first time working with a women’s team. Former coach Khoun Laboravy is now my assistant and will continue helping with training. But I still don’t have full information on each player’s strengths and weaknesses,” he told a Tuesday press conference.
Head coach Koji Gyotoku and the captain of the Cambodian women’s team (right) appear at an August 5 press conference with their Vietnamese opponents, who they will meet tonight. Supplied
Koji explained that Cambodia is in Group A alongside three strong teams: hosts Vietnam, Thailand and Indonesia. The Japanese coach emphasised that his goal is to help Cambodia earn points from this tough group.
“We will fight to earn points. All three opponents in our group are stronger than we are, but we will not give up. Our goal is to get at least some points, and if possible, even three points. I’ve observed training sessions and can see that our Cambodian players have great fighting spirit, so I believe they can show their ability in this tournament,” he said.
The ASEAN MSIG Serenity Cup 2025 in Vietnam runs from August 6 to 19. In the opening match tonight (Wednesday), Cambodia will face hosts Vietnam at Lach Tray Stadium at 7pm, following a match between Thailand and Indonesia.
The Cambodia U20 squad train in China. They will take on the hosts at 2.30pm today. FFC
The U20 side will begin their Group E qualifiers for the AFC U20 Women’s Asian Cup 2026 today in China, facing Lebanon at 2.30pm. They will than take on hosts China on August 8, and Sri Lanka on August 10.
Head coach Khek Khemarin expressed confidence that his team is well-prepared and hopes they will perform well in the opening match.
“We are fully prepared, both mentally and physically. What we’ve focused on most is their strength and conditioning, and we’ve seen that the team has recovered its form. So we hope that in tomorrow’s (today’s) match, they will do well,” he said, via the Cambodian Football Federation (FFC).