The catalyst that helped U17 Song Lam Nghe An overcome U17 Viettel

The knot in the quarter-finals comes from tactics

Step into the quarterfinalsU17 Song Lam Nghe Anmust face the traditional U17 Hanoi team. This is predicted to be a very difficult match for coach Phan Tien Hoai's team. Because in addition to having an even force, U17 Hanoi is also led by coach Pham Minh Duc, who has a lot of experience and has achieved many high achievements in youth tournaments. And in fact, U17 Hanoi entered the game with confidence, with a close-quarters style of play, surrounding the opponent right from the middle of the field, which caused a lot of difficulties for the small passing style of U17 Song Lam Nghe An.

The joy of U17 Song Lam Nghe An after winning against U17 Hanoi. Photo: Chung Le

The turning point of the match came when coach Phan Tien Hoai decided to change the way of playing. U17 Song Lam Nghe An switched from short ball rotations to using long passes and attacking from the flanks.

That immediately came into play with Van Linh's opening goal. From an attack on the right wing, Tan Minh passed the ball back inside for midfielder number 18 to run in and score, tearing the net of Hanoi U17. In the second goal, Long Vu also received a long pass from midfielder Quoc Trung, passing the control of Hanoi's defense, to run down and score, doubling the gap. The match was decided when a Hanoi player headed into his own net after a corner kick from Song Lam Nghe An U17. At the end of the match, Quoc Hoa scored another goal to seal a 4-0 victory for Song Lam Nghe An U17.

Coach Phan Tien Hoai - U17 Song Lam Nghe An. Photo: Chung Le

Revealing the secret to U17 Nghe An's victory, the head coach of U17 Song Lam Nghe An said: "Coach Pham Minh Duc - U17 Hanoi is very good at breaking the opponent's playing style, clearly shown in previous matches. Especially in the match with U17 PVF, they created many difficulties for this team and brought about a 1-1 draw. The coaching staff of U17 Song Lam Nghe An had determined in advance that U17 Hanoi would play high pressing. Therefore, they conveyed to the athletes to keep a calm mental state. After overcoming the difficult initial period, the coaching staff adjusted and gave instructions to implement a suitable playing style. And that was the key for U17 Song Lam Nghe An to achieve good results against U17 Hanoi".

Besides applying reasonable tactics in the quarter-final match, we must also praise the fighting spirit and ability of the U17 Song Lam Nghe An players. They showed their qualities and desire to bring an explosive match against the team that is considered "Strong because of rice, bold because of money".

“I would like to commend my players for their performance in the match against Hanoi U17. They showed solidarity and had the courage to overcome the pressure that Hanoi U17 created in the first minutes of the match. The victory in the quarter-finals has relieved some of the pressure on the Song Lam Nghe An U17 players. We will focus on being as relaxed as possible and encourage the players to try to overcome each match,” said Coach Phan Tien Hoai.

Fan catalyst

The next mountain that U17 Song Lam Nghe An must overcome before thinking about a further destination in this tournament is U17 Viettel. This is a team that has created a brand on the map of Vietnamese football. In the past, many talents were born from here. And coming to this tournament, U17 Viettel also owns many promising players such as Cong Hau, Cong Phuong, Nguyen Hoang Nam, Dang Thanh Binh... With the current force, U17 Viettel has shown its strength when going through 4 matches in the 2023 National U17 Finals, all of which were won. Especially in the match against U17 Khanh Hoa in the quarterfinals, U17 Viettel showed a class superior to their opponents. They completely dominated the match, showing many smooth, beautiful, highly effective coordination moves, thereby winning a resounding 3-0 victory.

Evaluating the opponents in the semi-finals, the head coach of U17 Song Lam Nghe An said: “Viettel is a large youth football training center in the country, and has created a brand in Vietnamese football. And in general, the teams that have reached this round are all strong teams, every team has a chance. Therefore, the coaching staff of U17 Song Lam Nghe An will encourage the players to have the best preparation. At the same time, build a suitable strategy for the upcoming match.”

Trong Son brings a new breeze to the attack of U17 Song Lam Nghe An. Photo: Hai Hoang

That shows that U17 Song Lam Nghe An wants to overcome U17 Viettel is not an easy thing. In addition to using people reasonably, coach Phan Tien Hoai also needs a breakthrough in tactics to be able to create a surprise against the opponent in the semi-finals. With a strong team like U17 Viettel, U17 Song Lam Nghe An certainly cannot maintain continuous pressure to gain the advantage of leading points like in the past matches. But they can surprise the opponent by finding the right time to strike.

“We have studied the playing style of U17 Viettel, through which we will come up with the best plan for the athletes. U17 Song Lam Nghe An continues to make efforts with the highest determination to win against U17 Viettel”, Coach Phan Tien Hoai said.

However, an indispensable factor that helps U17 Song Lam Nghe An gain more strength is the spiritual contributions of the fans. Over the past few days, many Nghe An fans, regardless of the distance, have been present at PVF Stadium to cheer for coach Phan Tien Hoai and his team. Their encouragement is the motivation and catalyst that helps U17 Song Lam Nghe An play with determination and sublimation as shown in the past matches.

Sharing this, coach Phan Tien Hoai said: “Over the past time, we have been very touched by the enthusiastic support of Nghe An fans. In particular, many fans and relatives of the players have not hesitated to travel far to cheer for U17 Song Lam Nghe An. We hope that fans will continue to accompany the team in the next stages. We really appreciate the fans' feelings and will compete and devote ourselves to the colors of Song Lam Nghe An.”

It must be affirmed that the sweetest things will only come to the team with enough will to overcome difficulties and challenges. U17 Song Lam Nghe An wants to conquer the Gold Cup and will need to strive to overcome themselves before the big wave called U17 Viettel. And above all, the support of the fans is the lever to help coach Phan Tien Hoai and his team achieve success.