Hai Phong - Song Lam Nghe An: Lach Tray Stadium 'easy to go, hard to return'?

Both the home team and the away team feel lucky because their opponents are also in a crisis of form. Meanwhile,Lam River Nghe An(SLNA) just lost consecutively toHong Linh Ha Tinh(round 10) and Pho Hien (2021 National Cup qualifying round), Hai Phong has also experienced a "goal drought" lasting up to 7 consecutive matches with a duration of more than 630 minutes.

The match between the two teams in round 13, phase 1 of V.League 2020. Photo courtesy of Ba Tuan

Up to now, the Hai Phong team is ranked 12th with 11 points, while the Nghe An team is right behind with 1 point less. Therefore, if they lose this match, Hai Phong or SLNA will have to continue to sink in the last position on the rankings, in case Saigon FC wins against SHB Da Nang (in the match that took place 1 hour earlier).

In many aspects, Hai Phong is the team that is rated higher. In addition to the home field advantage, coach Pham Anh Tuan's team also did not suffer any serious losses in terms of force. It is almost certain that in the match to welcome SLNA, the Hai Phong team will have the service of the foreign trio Diego Fagan - Joseph Mpande - Jeremie Lynch.

Coach Ngo Quang Truong will not have important pillars in hand. Photo courtesy of Duc Anh

The timely recovery of Jeremie Lynch from injury and the addition of Mpande in the mid-season transfer window will improve the attacking ability of the Lach Tray team. Remember, the two foreign players mentioned above are not only good at their profession but also very knowledgeable about the V.League environment. In particular, Jeremie Lynch once played for SLNA.

On the other side of the front line, coach Ngo Quang Truong is not as lucky as his colleague Pham Anh Tuan. A series of different injuries to captain Hoang Van Khanh, right-back Nguyen Sy Nam, central midfielder Dang Van Lam, striker Peter Samuel... are turning SLNA into a "miniature hospital".

Most likely, coach Ngo Quang Truong will have to "make do" with young players like Thai Ba Sang, Nguyen Van Duc, Nguyen Van Viet or Tran Manh Quynh. Besides, the goal of winning points will depend on the talent of goalkeeper Nguyen Van Hoang and midfielder Phan Van Duc, who currently has 5 goals.

With the difficulties of losing strength and poor performance, not many SLNA fans dare to believe that their team will "win" against Hai Phong, in the match that will take place at 6:00 p.m. this afternoon (April 28). Simply, the Nghe An team is at a disadvantage compared to the Hai Phong team, at least in terms of personnel and the head-to-head record between the two teams at Lach Tray Stadium in the past.

According to statistics, out of 16 visits to Hai Phong, SLNA only won 2 times, the rest were 7 draws and 7 times they returned empty-handed. Most recently, in the final round of phase 1 of V.League 2020, Hai Phong defeated SLNA with a score of 3 - 1. Obviously, Lach Tray Stadium is a place "easy to go, hard to return" for the Nghe An team.

It seems that the possibility of coach Ngo Quang Truong and his team leaving the Port City with a favorable result is extremely slim./.