SLNA "abnormal" World Cup season: Who would have thought...
No one else but the SLNA captain is the one who expressed the most concern about the V-League taking place during the 2018 World Cup season. And the Nghe An team is... unusual during this time, even a strong team like Hanoi FC cannot do it!
1. Surely those who follow national football, and the ongoing V-League, will not forget how SLNA coach Nguyen Duc Thang complained when he and his students had to fight in the World Cup season, blaming the Organizing Committee for not giving the teams a break in the middle of the season.
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| Mr. Thang was worried that the 2018 World Cup could harm SLNA. |
This coach is afraid that his players will be so engrossed in watching the World Cup that it will affect their health and cause them to neglect their training. And there is one thing that people don't say out loud but are secretly worried about, fearing that the players will be greedy to "bet" on matches taking place in Russia...
At that time, the captain of the Nghe An team had reason to be confused and worried when the team played so poorly that it was hard to understand - after 12 rounds, they only tasted victory in 1 match (winning 2-0 against Ho Chi Minh City Club in round 4), the rest were 6 losses, 4 draws.
For the first time in many years, a SLNA team famous for its many talents and proud training facility is mentioned with 2 risks... of relegation!
SLNA also showed its confusion when in between, the team played quite well in the National Cup and got a ticket to the semi-finals after beating Da Nang with a total score of 5-1 in 2 matches (3-1 and 2-0).
2. However, what happened to SLNA during the World Cup season with many lurking worries and traps? In total, until France played the final and beat Croatia 4-2, holding the gold cup high, coach Nguyen Duc Thang's team played a total of 7 matches - the same journey as the world champions, and won all 7!
No V-League representative can do this, including the most leisurely Hanoi FC team in the table, which accepts the rest.
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| But on the contrary, the Nghe An team played like they were possessed, achieving a record of 8 consecutive wins. |
Interestingly, SLNA set an impressive winning streak from round 13 and also played on the 13th (June), with Hai Phong being the first "victim", followed by Binh Duong (2-1), Can Tho (1-0), Saigon (3-2), then Hai Phong (3-2), Nam Dinh (3-2), Quang Nam (2-1).
And if counting the 3 latest points they just "pocketed" when hosting HAGL at home with a score of 3-1 in round 20 of V-League, the number of consecutive wins has increased to 8. This is a tournament record that only Dong Tam Long An at its peak achieved 13 years ago.
3. From the bottom of the table, SLNA galloped to the top in the World Cup season and is currently ranked 3rd in the rankings with 32 points, only 2 points behind Khanh Hoa, who is ranked above.
SLNA fans are happy and excited to watch their team, but they also can't help but feel sorry for their team. Blame Duc Thang and his team. If only they had been "possessed" like they have been in the past, wouldn't Hanoi FC have finished early alone...
SLNA has shown how formidable they are when they are determined and willing to play. Even though the V-League has seen its champion early, it is still unpredictable and unbelievable!
Video SLNA 3-1 HAGL: