Cong Phuong, is it true that 'third time is the charm'?

Up to now, Cong Phuong has scored 26 goals, including 2 goals against SLNA, 1 at home in Pleiku in the 2015 season and the remaining goal at Vinh in the 2008 season. The reason for such a small number is that after 6 professional seasons, the Nghe An boy has only played 3.5 seasons in V.League with 73 matches.

Can Cong Phuong leave Vinh Stadium with 3 points? Club Photo

The first goal against SLNA was when Cong Phuong shot past goalkeeper Nguyen Manh on August 22, 2015. In the SLNA squad that went to Pleiku and lost the match 3-1 that day, there were still coach Quang Truong, defender Dinh Dong and midfielder Quang Tinh. It must be said that the Nghe An players remember this match very much, when they lost early, they could not get the ball against the early playing style of the young players of HAGL.

Two times gone home empty-handed

In the 2017 V.League season, when coming to Vinh Stadium, HAGL lost 0-2. No. 10 Cong Phuong, despite his best efforts, still could not penetrate the defense guarded by Que Ngoc Hai and Van Khanh. Japanese foreign player M. Ideguchi was also absent for the entire 90 minutes of the match. Cong Phuong's playing style requires a teammate to play alongside him so that he can pass and break away in the final moments after dribbling.

A year later, Cong Phuong was the one who scored the equalizer 1-2 in the 3-1 loss of the Mountain City team at Vinh Stadium. On the SLNA side, the 3 players who scored were Olaha, Xuan Manh, Xuan Toan. Coach Duong Minh Ninh at that time did not have the services of the duo Tuan Anh and Xuan Truong, so he was overwhelmed by the home team and accepted defeat. Obviously, Minh Vuong and Trieu Viet Hung were not midfielders with good ball control ability against a solid defense of Nghe An.

Battle of wits
In fact, when returning to Vinh to play against his hometown team, Cong Phuong did not have cold feet like many other players. The fact that Cong Phuong failed twice in Vinh and only scored one goal is not too surprising. Both times, HAGL did not have the strongest squad, the midfield was patched together so they could not overcome the walls set up by the home team.

Phi Son's ability to play is still uncertain. Club photo

This time, the situation seems different. Besides Cong Phuong, Ho Chi Minh City Club also has many other players from Nghe An. These people were once famous in SLNA's shirt such as Phi Son, Hoang Thinh... However, Phi Son's ability to play is still a question mark.

Remember in the match against Viettel, Phi Son replaced Cong Phuong as an attacking midfielder instead of a right winger. Ironically, only when he was not playing with Phi Son did Cong Phuong shine, in addition to scoring a goal, he also had an assist for Huy Toan to score.

Whether Phuong will "bloom" or not and how to get points against an energetic defense of the Vinh home team is a whole art of arrangement by the Korean coach. This time returning to Vinh, Cong Phuong has strong soldiers and generals to support him, but this does not mean that they will get 3 points.

When both understand each other so well, the way the two coaches command their troops in 90 minutes will greatly determine the outcome of the match. In this match, the home team will have an advantage because thousands of Nghe An fans will come to the stadium to cheer for coach Quang Truong and his team. On the other hand, the home team's spirit is rising, making it difficult for Cong Phuong to play for the third time at Vinh Stadium.