North Central Derby: Will it be difficult for guests to score points?

(Baonghean.vn) - The North Central derby in recent seasons has always been dramatic, exciting and full of surprises. The match on January 8 in the opening match of V. League 2017 between the two teams is no exception.

The homeowner has "heavenly time - favorable location - harmony of people"

FLC Thanh Hoa this season is highly appreciated for its coaching staff and player quality. Not putting faith in the domestic coach, the Thanh Hoa team's management went all the way to Europe to invite coach Petrovic to take over the captain position. Just reading the Serbian coach's cross-resume is enough to make everyone respect him.

With Mr. Petrovic on the coaching bench, FLC Thanh Hoa is like a "tiger with wings".

The 70-year-old strategist once helped Red Star Belgrade win the European Cup C1 (predecessor of the Champions League) in 1991, and has worked for many clubs in Europe such as Espanyol (Spain), Olympiakos (Greece)... Coach Petrovic's talent and reputation will be maximized when FLC Thanh Hoa currently has a team of players with good professional qualifications.

In addition to the stable squad in V. League 2016 such as Thanh Thang, Dinh Dong, Hoang Thinh, Omar, Dinh Tung..., we also welcome the star players of Vietnamese football in recent years such as Trong Hoang, Uche, Dinh Tien Thanh. From defense to attack, from inside the field to outside the track, wherever you look at Thanh Hoa stadium, you can see stars.

Obviously, with such a massive recruitment campaign, FLC Thanh Hoa has implicitly shown its goal of winning the V. League for the first time in history. Against an SLNA team that is not highly regarded in terms of both strength and ambition, 3 points is a must for the Thanh team in the opening match of V. League 2017.

In 13 home matches in V. League 2016, FLC Thanh Hoa only lost 1 match (lost to Hai Phong 0-1), the rest were 7 wins and 5 draws. It is enough to see that home advantage and home crowd have a great influence on the achievements of the Thanh team.

SLNA "poor and still struggling"

According to the information just received, the possibility of the number 1 goalkeeper and captain Tran Nguyen Manh playing is still uncertain. If that unfortunate thing is true, SLNA will face countless difficulties with the goal of winning points against the home team FLC Thanh Hoa. In the 2016 season, in the first 3 matches, coach Ngo Quang Truong and his team lost 2 consecutive matches against Hai Phong, XSKT Can Tho and only won 1 point against the mid-level team QNK Quang Nam.

Having to play away against a strong team like FLC Thanh Hoa in the first round of V. League 2017, Nghe An fans can't help but worry about Nguyen Duc Thang and his team. Perhaps, what SLNA fans can rely on at this time is the surprise of football in general and the Thanh - Nghe derby in particular.

Referee Ha Anh Chien's mistake saved FLC Thanh Hoa from a home loss last season.

It seems that in the previous matches between the two teams, the final result rarely depends on purely technical statistics. The proof is that in V. League 2016, FLC Thanh Hoa was also rated much higher than SLNA but only won 1 point after 2 meetings (if referee Ha Anh Chien had not made a mistake, FLC Thanh Hoa would have lost both matches).

Before the match, the home team FLC Thanh Hoa was undoubtedly better than SLNA. However, when the referee had not yet blown the final whistle, all the numbers were for reference only. Will SLNA be able to score points on Thanh Hoa's field? How did the "newbies" like head coach Nguyen Duc Thang, coach Petrovic, Uche, Olaha Michael, Henry Shackiel... perform in their first match in V. League 2017? And how did Trong Hoang, Hoang Thinh, Van Binh, Dinh Dong play when they met their hometown team again? Thanh Hoa and Nghe An fans are eagerly waiting for the answer on the afternoon of January 8 at Thanh Hoa Stadium.

Tram Uyen