One of the tournament favourites, Japan, began their AFC Women’s Asian Cup 2026 campaign with a 2-0 victory against Chinese Taipei in Group C at the Perth Rectangular Stadium.
Nadeshiko had to be patient and were made to work hard by a dogged Chinese Taipei side, whose ultra-defensive approach meant that Japan dominated from the first whistle to the last.
The Chinese Taipei defence held firm in the first half, even managing to clear the ball off the line in the 44th minute. In the second half, Japan’s persistence finally paid off with Momoko Tanikawa breaking the deadlock after the Bayern Munich midfielder produced a neat finish.
Remina Chiba’s cross was then met by Kiko Seike’s header as the two substitutes combined for the second goal in the 92nd minute to seal a 2-0 victory in their opening match.
In the day’s later game, also held at the same venue, India went toe-to-toe with Vietnam but in the end fell just short.
The Golden Star Women Warriors dominated the first half, with Nguyễn Thị Bích Thùy having their first notable attempt in the early stages but seeing her attempt hit the crossbar. On the half hour mark, Vietnam opened the scoring through Ngân Thị Vạn Sự, who curled the ball into the top corner to put them 1-0 up.
Having fallen behind, India head coach Amelia Valverde made a tactical switch to move star forward Manisha Kalyan centrally from the wings, and that change started to show its impact with Manisha even producing a Cruyff turn as she tried to influence the match.
Valverde decided to bring on debutant Sanfida Nongrum as a half-time substitute and it proved to be a masterstroke. Sanfida, who became the first female footballer from the state of Meghalaya to play for the senior national team, struck a left-footed effort from outside the box, which had enough venom to find the back of the net.
India showed more physical aggression in the second half and closed down Vietnam with greater intensity, with Manisha having a swerving long-range free-kick attempt on target in stoppage time.
Despite India’s best efforts, it was to be Vietnam who had the final say as Vũ Thị Hoa’s low cut back found Vạn Sự to slot the ball home in the 94th minute for her second goal and help her team come away with all three points.
WHAT WE LEARNED
Japan have to be more efficient: Japan is on a mission to reclaim the title, having been champions in two of the last three AFC Women’s Asian Cup tournaments. In the 2022 edition, they were knocked out on penalties by eventual winners China in the semi-final stage.
Before they square up against other title contenders in the knockout stages, they will clearly need to sharpen their boots. Against Chinese Taipei, they had a whopping 90% possession and attempted a total of 31 shots, yet only eight of those were on target. That is something they will clearly be looking to improve upon in their remaining group stage matches.
Group C will be fiercely competitive: In Vietnam’s narrow win over India, both teams scored in the same match for the first time in the AFC Women’s Asian Cup 2026. India will take heart from their second half display, in which they did get on the scoresheet. However, in the end, it was a 2-1 scoreline in favour of Vietnam as it was back in 2003.
Vietnam, on the other hand, will be relieved more than anything to get over the line thanks to a last-gasp strike, while Chinese Taipei will fancy their chances when they meet next after conceding just two goals against Japan. With Japan expected to top the group, the battle for the runner up spot will be difficult to call, with the possibility of even a best placed third team progressing to the knockout stage.
WHAT THEY SAID
Nils Nielsen – Japan head coach: “The match was very one-sided. However, we need to do better and be faster in the final third. We made plenty of deep runs and crosses today, but we were not aggressive enough.”
On opponents deploying ultra defensive strategy against Japan – “I like the fact that my players kept their focus. Any team is entitled to choose their approach when playing against us, but we will find a way through.”
Sanfida Nongrum – India: “We feel very disappointed to concede so late in the match. We gave our 100% in this game, we will never give up and give our best again in the upcoming contest.”
WHAT COMES NEXT
Group C action will be back again at the Perth Rectangular Stadium on Saturday, March 7.
Chinese Taipei vs Vietnam
Saturday, March 7 at 1:00pm
Perth Rectangular Stadium
India vs Japan
Saturday, March 7 at 7:00pm
Perth Rectangular Stadium
