SLNA's victory over HAGL: 'Young people take the initiative, old people set the example'

“FIFA Virus”

The fact that only goalkeeper Nguyen Manh was called up to the national team in the recent King's Cup campaign certainly won't satisfy Nghe An fans. However, because of that, many of SLNA's current pillars have more time to rest and recover their physical and mental strength to be ready to welcome HAGL.

HAGL players were at a disadvantage in the dispute with SLNA players throughout the match. Photo: Duc Anh

On the opposite side, HAGL contributed 5 names to the Vietnam national team in the recent trip to Thailand and 3 names for the friendly match between U23 Vietnam and U23 Myanmar to prepare for the SEA Games.

Except for Van Thanh who had to sit out due to injury, all the remaining players were tested. That made the difference in physical strength so SLNA had an overwhelming advantage over the mountain town team throughout the 90 minutes.

Natural conditions

Obviously, it is not easy for any team not located in the North Central region to visit SLNA at 5pm this season.

The hot and dry weather combined with the Lao wind not only causes the players' physical strength to decline rapidly but also makes the Vinh stadium's grass gradually "desertify".

HAGL head coach said that the poor grass surface at Vinh Stadium was part of the failure. Photo: Duc Anh

Of course, the home team is too familiar with these harsh conditions to be able to turn those difficult conditions into their own advantages.

The HAGL players lost more and more energy as they played. On a pitch that did not guarantee quality, the away team's combination-based play became increasingly gloomy as the game progressed.

While SLNA got closer to the end of the match, when the sun was gradually setting, they were more energetic and mentally comfortable to "finish off" the opponent.

Coach Nguyen Duc Thang agrees to change

During the match with HAGL, those who witnessed the match were surprised by the way SLNA entered the game and their playing style had a strange transformation.

On the pitch, coach Nguyen Duc Thang did not have much time to sit on the coaching bench during the match. He went to the sidelines to urge his players to push up their formation and called out the names of players who were not playing with enthusiasm.

Ho Tuan Tai has scored in two consecutive rounds. Photo: Duc Anh

This made HAGL have a thrilling match at Vinh Stadium, while the home team Vinh Stadium, after scoring the opening goal, continued to attack strongly in search of a goal to double the gap. The change in tactical thinking of SLNA's head coach helped the home team have a match that satisfied the fans.

Young and bold, old and exemplary

On a day when the defense did not have much to do, on the offensive front, from the old bamboo trees to the newly sprouted shoots on the attack line, all left certain impressions in the 3 goals of the home team.

With experienced players as a solid backline, SLNA's young players are playing brilliantly. Photo: Duc Anh

Besides, players like Ngoc Toan, Xuan Thang and Xuan Manh all played very enthusiastically. Ho Tuan Tai scored his second goal after 2 consecutive rounds of V.League 2019, while Olaha also scored again after more than 6 scoreless matches.

Vinh city fire pan revived

After unimpressive results over many rounds, Vinh Stadium after each round SLNA returned to play at home witnessed the number of spectators gradually decreasing.

However, HAGL is an opponent that receives a lot of attention from Vietnamese football fans every time they come to the stadium, and the away match against SLNA in round 13 of V.League 2019 is no exception.

It has been a long time since “Thanh Vinh Fire Pan” was so full. Photo: Duc Anh

For a long time, new waves of people continued to be created by tens of thousands of fans coming to the “Fire Pan of Vinh City”. This made the home team’s feet on the field seem to be given more strength to dance with the ball, creating SLNA’s biggest win since the beginning of the season.

With the victory over HAGL and the change in playing style, the Vinh home team will help attract the audience back to their home field so that it can soon return to being the "Fire Pan" like in the golden age.