When Song Lam Nghe An loses its identity

That is the will to overcome difficulties, the passion, the aspiration of Nghe's spirit, Nghe's bravery, each match is "a game for men" meaning not afraid of collision, entering the match with more than 100% ability, causing many opponents to lose the match before even reaching Vinh stadium! Of course, there are times when the world criticizesLam River Nghe Anplaying "cutting nails, chopping iron", but those were the first years of joining the top football village, strength and experience were limited, the path was not clear...

It is a pity that after receiving countless delegations from other provinces and teams to Vinh to learn, watch and admire the traditional room, especially the youth training work, Song Lam Nghe An gradually lost its inherent identity when domestic and world football entered a period of high socialization. Football from localities such as Long An, Gia Lai, Binh Duong, Hanoi, Nam Dinh... took turns winning the V-League championships. Although not relegated, now Song Lam Nghe An is finding it difficult to compete with its neighbors Thanh Hoa or Ha Tinh, as the last two seasons are proof.

Thinking back, it is clear that football today needs a strong, ambitious investor, willing to go the long way with the team, like the bosses at Hanoi FC, Nam Dinh Steel Blue, Hanoi Police, etc. or corporate models with many investors like in Binh Duong, Hoang Anh Gia Lai, Binh Dinh... Song Lam Nghe An when switching to socialization is also associated with investors but there is no real "boss" or team owner, daring to "show his face" to compete with the world, timidly announcing pre-season goals, declaring half-closed, half-open investments, never daring to publicly announce the bonus for a win..., meaning there is no real strength and ambition, causing the team to be looked down upon before entering the tournament.

A V-League squad that mainly consists of "individual" players, plus weak foreign players, no matter how hard they try, they will be powerless. Traditionally, a team can transfer players whose contracts have expired according to regulations, but they must nurture and "take care" of the pillars, the leading players, the pillars in the lines, and have a strong force of successors and reserves ready to replace them. Moreover, the purchase of foreign players, which used to be considered "cool", is now only seen as "hot hands catching ears", buying hastily at the end of the season, buying hastily leads to heartache when seeing foreign players receiving the ball flying a meter. The more the team plays, the more unstable it becomes due to injuries, penalty cards, because their tactics are exposed, because of bad luck, not to mention if they have the will but cannot win, only draw and lose, it is difficult to go on the field with a relaxed, comfortable, and sublime spirit?

Without a leader on the field, who can the players, especially the young players who have just started playing in the V-League, look up to? In the past, Song Lam players looked up to their seniors Ha Thin, Bui Dinh Dai, Huu Thang, Quang Truong, Trong Hoang... to play with all their might in every move. Now, will young player Long Vu hear anything from Olaha, who is wearing the captain's armband, to be able to develop the talent of a player who is currently rated the highest in the U17 and U18 groups? Senior Dinh Hoang always sits on the bench, and Xuan Tien cannot be the one to direct his teammates. Obviously, it is not too much or wrong to say that the young players "lost their direction from the beginning", no matter how much Anh Tuan, Nhu Thuat or Huy Hoang shouted hoarsely on the sidelines?

Moreover, in the past, Song Lam Nghe An often went into battle with solid support behind them. That was a large crowd of spectators cheering everywhere, from home to away, and the enthusiastic support of provincial and industry leaders. Behind the coaching staff was a "team" of managers and leaders with expertise, plenty of experience on the field and in the battlefield, always encouraging and supporting. The question is, how much of those things are still there, how much are they lost, why, and how to solve them? It is very difficult to answer, if not impossible!

Of course, it has to be said again. Professional football is different from football in the subsidy period. But the question is why other localities always find strong sponsors for the team, for the expensive game of football, while the Vinh Stadium team is still "dancing like a duck" until now? It is said that the new sponsor in this difficult situation is learning from Japan, that is, calling on many sponsors to join hands with the team? The Japanese have succeeded with this method, but we are just starting? Just remember that the Japanese have succeeded with school football, while we train young people with budget money? Moreover, whether the main sponsor has enough prestige and experience to make other sponsors feel secure to join hands or not is also not easy to say at present.

Song Lam Nghe An is "going mediocre" in all aspects in V-League, starting from the weak sponsor, although the team always has strengths in tradition and youth training. Simply put, it is still a story of "only with reality can one uphold morality", without money one cannot play professional, top-level football. Whether identity or tradition is preserved and promoted or not, in the end, starts from the eternal first thing: money? Low salary does not have high achievements and will, identity is a story of life, not in the sky. No one is surprised or regretful when the peak of football The Cong, then Hanoi Police, Ha Nam Ninh Industry, Ho Chi Minh City Customs, Saigon Port, Hai Phong Port, Quang Ninh Coal, Dong Thap... left the stage one by one and had to wait a long time for a few of those names to reappear in V-League?

Song Lam Nghe An cannot slip out of that inevitable path, the team's record of never being relegated to the V-League is more fragile than ever, if there is no change, specific support in terms of force, and approach from the current investors and sponsors?