The day Tran Dinh Dong returned to Thanh Hoa
(Baonghean.vn) - At present, Tran Dinh Dong is the only face in the SLNA squad who has ever played for Thanh Hoa. The defender wearing the number 16 shirt was the center of attention in the match between Thanh Hoa and SLNA on the afternoon of June 12.
Sharing before this match, Tran Dinh Dong affirmed: "This is not the first time I have met my old team, so the feeling is very normal. When playing for Thanh Hoa, meeting SLNA again, I still played my best, without any hesitation or psychological "nervousness". For me, as a professional player, I must respect the flag and colors of my home team. Therefore, in the upcoming match, I will still play with determination to help SLNA achieve a positive result. Hopefully, luck will be on our side."
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| Tran Dinh Dong (left) played for Thanh Hoa for 3 seasons. Photo: Xuan Thuy |
Referring to Thanh Hoa's current situation, veteran Anh Son said: "The appearance of coach Nguyen Thanh Cong on the coaching bench will help Thanh Hoa gradually overcome difficulties. In addition to his good expertise, coach Cong also does a very good job of ideological work for the players. In my opinion, Thanh Hoa's force is quite stable with many talented and experienced faces in the squad. Typical examples are Hoang Dinh Tung, Le Van Thang, Nguyen Trong Hung or Hoang Vu Samson".
Moving to Thanh Hoa at the beginning of the 2016 season, Tran Dinh Dong immediately proved his class. Unlike at SLNA, at the Thanh team, the player born in 1987 is often arranged to play in the right-back position. Thanks to his impressive performances for Thanh Hoa at V.League 2016, Tran Dinh Dong was called up by former coach Nguyen Huu Thang to the Vietnam National Team, participating in the AFF Cup 2016, a tournament where Le Cong Vinh and his teammates were eliminated in the semi-finals.
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| Tran Dinh Dong (yellow shirt) is an important pillar of SLNA. Photo: Minh Chien/Vietnam+ |
During the 3 seasons playing for the Thanh team, under the leadership of coach Le Thuy Hai, coach Hoang Thanh Tung or foreign coach Ljupko Petrovic, the right-back position in Thanh Hoa was always assigned to Tran Dinh Dong. And if the Thanh team did not fall into crisis before the 2019 season (FLC Group withdrew), most likely, the English player Son would have retired in Thanh Hoa's shirt. Tran Dinh Dong left Thanh with the following achievements: V.League 2017 runner-up, V.League 2018 runner-up and National Cup 2018 runner-up.
Returning to SLNA after 3 years away, Tran Dinh Dong continues to show his value as a great player. The statistics do not lie. In V.League 2019, Tran Dinh Dong played a total of 24 matches, helping SLNA become the team with the best defense in the tournament (26 goals conceded). After 5 matches this season (3 matches in V.League, 2 matches in the National Cup), the 33-year-old defender has been on the field for a full 450 minutes. The former Thanh Hoa player is one of the 3 players who have played the most for SLNA since the beginning of the season, along with Nguyen Sy Nam and Ho Tuan Tai.
Almost certainly, Tran Dinh Dong will wear the captain's armband of SLNA in the away match at Thanh Hoa Stadium, in round 4 of V.League 2020. A great honor for Tran Dinh Dong, on the day of returning to Thanh./.
