The motivation to reach the 'throne' of Thieu Nien Quynh Luu

Quynh Luu is a locality with a strong sports and physical training movement and is also a locality with a rich tradition in the Nghe An Newspaper Cup Youth Football Tournament. Before this year's season, Quynh Luu Youth Football teams had won the championship 4 times, including the championship in the 2023 season.

Therefore, in the 26th season of 2024, Quynh Luu Youth entered the tournament with the mission of defending the championship. In 2017, Quynh Luu Youth team also successfully defended the championship won 1 year before.

In the group stage, in the first two matches, Thieu Nien Quynh Luu easily defeated Thieu Nien Yen Thanh and Thieu Nien Hung Nguyen with the same score of 2-0. In the final match against Thieu Nien Thieu Thiet Hoang Mai, despite some difficulties in the first half, Thieu Nien Quynh Luu players had an explosive second half to win with the score of 3-1, at the same time taking the top spot in the group from this opponent.

In the quarter-final match, Quynh Luu Youth had to rely on the only goal in the 39th minute by player Nguyen Chi Cong to overcome Quy Chau Youth. In the semi-final, against a team from Phu Quy, Quy Hop Youth, Quynh Luu Youth had to go through a very difficult 50 minutes when they were held to a 2-2 draw by their opponents and had to rely on a penalty shootout to win the right to play in the final match.

Meeting Vinh City Youth again in the championship match, Quynh Luu Youth showed superiority in the first half but could not score a goal. In the second half, under strong pressure from Vinh City Youth players, Quynh Luu Youth conceded a goal with only 7 minutes left in the match.

However, the Quynh players did not lose their spirit, they still calmly organized their defense and were ready for quick counterattacks. And in a counterattack in the 48th minute, Thieu Nien Quynh Luu equalized the score thanks to number 10 Nguyen Chi Cong. Entering the penalty shootout, Thieu Nien Quynh Luu won with a score of 4-3.

The strength of Quynh Luu Youth this year is that it has a relatively even squad of players in terms of physical strength and technique. In particular, goalkeeper Ho Tien Sap, with a height of over 1.6m and very quick reflexes, has contributed significantly to helping Vinh City Youth become the team that has conceded the fewest goals in the tournament (4 goals). In front of this goalkeeper is libero Trinh Ho Quoc Toan, who plays calmly and confidently, along with the wing duo who attack and defend rhythmically, Ho Khac Minh Huy and Tran Hoang Anh.

In the middle of the field, Thieu Nien Quynh Luu has a pair of aggressive and fiery midfielders, Phan Van Dat Toi and Dau Huy Hieu. And especially striker Nguyen Chi Cong - the player who won the double title of Best Player and Top Scorer.

In addition to possessing excellent players, another strength of Quynh Luu Youth is the diversity in tactics, the players' awareness of following tactics and their strong mentality. In the semi-final match against Quy Hop Youth and the final match against Vinh City Youth, Quynh Luu players both conceded goals first, but they were not discouraged, calmly followed the tactics of the coaching staff, thereby achieving favorable results.

Besides, the strong fan base and enthusiastic cheering style also give strength to the Quynh Luu Youth players in each match of the tournament.

Mr. Duong Vu Phong - coach of Quynh Luu team shared more: "Quynh Luu youth entered the tournament as the reigning champion in the youth age group and this is always conveyed by the coaching staff to the students in each training session to encourage their pride, thereby motivating them to strive and compete with all their might for the flag and the position that their district is holding".

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Besides the desire to defend the championship, many players of the team also hope to become famous players from their hometown in the future, such as goalkeeper Duong Hong Son, striker Le Cong Vinh, Hoang Van Binh, Ho Phuc Tinh... That is the source of strength for Thieu Nien Quynh Luu to achieve success in the past two seasons.

Mr. Duong Vu Phong - Coach of Quynh Luu Youth Team.