Vietnam's star midfielder refuses Portuguese club offer

The Portuguese third division women's club entered talks in August to sign three Vietnamese attackers, striker Huynh Nhu, midfielder Nguyen Thi Tuyet Dung, and forward Pham Hai Yen. However, while Nhu and Yen took up the chance to play on European soil, Dung had turned down the offer.

"I'm currently a state worker of Ha Nam Province with plenty of duties. I’m putting everything else aside for now. Playing overseas is a good opportunity, but I have other stuff to take care of besides being a footballer. I need to stay to help support and train young players at the club," Dung told media.

At the moment, Dung is working for the provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism while playing for Phong Phu Ha Nam.

If Dung changed her mind and completed contractual procedures within the next three days, she could still join Lank FC.

The Braga-based club were established in early 2020 and are eager to recruit new players to join their first tournament, Portugal’s third division Campeonato Nacional III.

Dung is one of the best female footballers in Vietnam at the moment. She won the Vietnamese Golden Ball in 2014 and 2018. In 2017, she was named on the BBC 100 Women list, the first Vietnamese athlete to be thus honored.

Midfielder Tran Thi Hong Nhung of Phong Phu Ha Nam became the first Vietnamese woman to play for a foreign club when she joined Chonburi in Thailand last year.