Decoding Song Lam Nghe An's failure against Thanh Hoa

The absence of Khac Ngoc

SLNA's starting lineup for the away match against Thanh Hoa was surprisingly without Khac Ngoc and replaced by Ngoc Toan. The absence of the player who played well with Van Binh in the midfield made SLNA's play lack creativity and innovation.

SLNA's starting lineup is without Khac Ngoc. Photo: Trung Kien

In the first leg, despite having to play with one less player, Khac Ngoc's mobility helped the Nghe team control the game and create many dangerous attacks towards the opponent's goal. In the second leg in Thanh Hoa, Ngoc Toan, in his rare appearance in the starting lineup, did not leave much of an impression in the attacking situations as well as in supporting the defense.

Vinicius has not been able to integrate with the new team

Foreign player Vinicius was locked down by Thanh Hoa defenders. Photo: Xuan Thuy

Despite high expectations as one of the best scorers in the first leg for Ho Chi Minh City, the Brazilian foreign player still seems to have not found a common voice with his teammates in SLNA's attack. Speed, strength and cold finishing are Vinicius' strengths, but after 2 matches on the field from the start, this rookie has not yet found his killer instinct and taken advantage of his own advantages to help the new team improve the goal-scoring which is a headache for coach Duc Thang after more than half of the V.League has passed.

The "Silence" of Michael Olaha

He was the most enthusiastic and energetic player in the match against Thanh Hoa in the first leg and in the first half of the season. However, the past 2 matches of the second leg witnessed a completely different Olaha. The number 7 striker seemed to have lost himself with heavy ball handling, lack of spirit and was also lazier in movement than what fans had ever witnessed.

Michael Olaha has failed to score in many consecutive matches. Photo: Trung Kien

Is it possible that the contract with the Nghe An team that is about to expire and the interest of foreign clubs have caused the Nigerian foreign player to play with less spirit and determination than before? This is a question that needs more time to prove, but it is a pity for SLNA and Olaha because if this happens during this fierce competition period, the Nghe An team will find it very difficult to climb as high as the goals set at the beginning of the season.

Disjointed gameplay

Poor fighting spirit in some positions, the absence of some important players did not surprise SLNA in organizing an unsystematic attack as well as a surprise for the home team in this match. In the first half, the Nghe team lost the midfield and the mobility of young midfielder Trong Hung caused SLNA's defense to continuously foul the opponent's players in sensitive areas. Fortunately, the alertness of Memovic, Nguyen Manh or the lack of precision in the final shots of Thanh Hoa players helped SLNA avoid an early loss.

SLNA played disjointedly. Photo: Xuan Thuy

In the second half, although SLNA had somewhat regained control of the game, the ball was mainly circulated in the middle of the field and the attacks were still monotonous with the long ball being pushed up for the foreign players to handle. Of course, surrounded by an organized defense system, Vinicius and Olaha seemed harmless to goalkeeper Ba Son's goal. Finally, when things were too deadlocked, SLNA players had to use long-range shots to try their luck, but they were all unable to score even once.

Thanh Hoa played with excitement

SLNA's defeat did not only come from the weak reasons of the away team, but the home team Thanh Hoa in the match between the two teams in this second leg was also a completely different Thanh Hoa compared to the match in the first leg. The match in the 5th round of V.League was when the Thanh team was in a crisis in terms of force as well as not having abundant financial resources after the withdrawal of the old sponsor. The Thanh team at that time was still struggling at the bottom of the table while SLNA was flying high in 2nd place, causing the match to be one-sided even though the Nghe team had to play with one less player from very early on.

Thanh Hoa foreign players shine. Photo: Xuan Thuy

But since the return of Mr. De with more stable financial resources, additional forces and large bonuses for each victory were set, Thanh Hoa has turned around strongly and continuously won important points to climb from the bottom of the table until after the victory against SLNA, they squeezed into a position in the top 3.

Rimario's mobility as well as satellites such as Trong Hung, Van Thang, Stevens helped Thanh Hoa have a more powerful and creative attack than the visiting team SLNA. Rimario's excellence with his double goal also answered the comparison in attack between the two teams in the match of round 15 of V.League./.

Foreign players are weak, Song Lam Nghe An loses to Thanh Hoa

(Baonghean.vn) - With the brilliance of foreign player Rimario, Coach Vu Quang Bao had a perfect debut in front of Thanh Hoa fans. Meanwhile, Song Lam Nghe An received their third loss in V.League 2019.