Long An has released striker Ivan Khleborodov after a lackluster performance.

Long An Football Club has officially announced the termination of striker Ivan Khleborodov's contract just before the end of the first half of the 2025/26 National First Division season. This is a necessary decision made by the coaching staff to restructure the team's personnel amidst serious difficulties in the attacking line.

High expectations and slow adaptation.

Ivan Vyacheslavovich Khleborodov, a striker born in 1999, joined Tan An Stadium at the end of September 2025 with high expectations for a center forward with an ideal physique and powerful attacking ability. However, the reality in the First Division turned out to be completely contrary to the initial plans of the team from the West.

After a somewhat promising debut in the second round against Dong Thap, the striker quickly faded into obscurity. He appeared out of sync with the team's overall play, struggled to adapt to the Vietnamese football environment, and failed to find common ground with his teammates in the attacking line.

Alarming statistics for Russian foreign players.

For a foreign player expected to lead the attack, goal-scoring performance is a crucial measure of success. However, Ivan Khleborodov's statistics have been a major disappointment. It wasn't until his seventh match, against Bac Ninh, that the striker scored his first goal.

Notably, that was also his only goal after being given the opportunity to play 7 times. With such a low average performance, Ivan could not meet the demanding professional requirements in the fierce relegation battle, forcing the team to make the early decision to terminate his contract during the mid-season transfer window.

The crisis at Tan An Stadium

The departure of Ivan Khleborodov comes at a time when Long An is going through an extremely difficult period in terms of form. After 10 matches played, coach Nguyen Ngoc Linh's team has only accumulated a meager 8 points, languishing in the bottom three of the league table.

Long An's biggest problem right now is the ineffectiveness of their forward line. The team has only scored 6 goals since the start of the season but has conceded 13 (goal difference -7). Removing an ineffective foreign player is seen as a strategic move to free up playing time, thereby allowing them to find sharper new players to improve their performance in the second half of the season.