What is SLNA's problem right now?

Frankly, winning and losing are normal occurrences in football, but the current approach to the game by the SLNA coaching staff raises many questions. First of all, we must acknowledge the efforts of...Coach Huy HoangSLNA dared to boldly innovate their playing style.

Current situation of SLNA

Coach Huy Hoang still has a lot of work to do. Photo: Hai Ho

In their last two matches, SLNA employed a 3-5-2 formation and achieved possession of 58% and 55% respectively. This is something that, for various reasons, their two predecessors, coaches Quang Trường and Đức Thắng, were unable to accomplish.

Many experts agree that SLNA's biggest weakness at the moment is their off-ball movement. While the players from Nghe An are strong in tackling and winning the ball back from opponents, they lack options for passing and attacking play. Teammates don't move to support players with the ball, making it easy for opponents to surround them and prevent SLNA from organizing attacks. Long, inaccurate passes from the Nghe An players are easily neutralized by the defenses of Binh Duong and Binh Dinh.

Under coach Huy Hoang, SLNA still lacked a playmaker to organize attacks in the midfield. Olaha played deep, doing a good job of defending, but he wasn't the type of attacking midfielder like J. Lynch of Binh Dinh. Foreign players Basit and Ojong Mark had poor individual technique and couldn't operate independently like Rafaelson. The midfield lacked a midfielder with good coverage and long-range shooting ability like the Brazilian midfielder Hendrio.

SLNA's decision to appoint an assistant coach specializing in tactical and match analysis who is not a former player and lacks coaching qualifications means that when facing difficulties, coach Huy Hoang lacks timely professional advice. It's unclear whether sponsor Tan Long has recognized this and adjusted the system so that assistant coaches Van Quyen, Nhu Thuat, Bui Minh, and Duc Thang can effectively fulfill their professional roles. SLNA has boldly abandoned its lackluster 4-4-2 formation, but switching to a 3-5-2 formation is proving difficult. SLNA players are moving in a disjointed manner and making many inaccurate passes due to their unfamiliarity with the change and the uneven quality of the team's players.

Aiming for a top 3 finish?

Xuan Manh and his teammates tried their best but could not avoid defeat for the home team. Photo: Chung Nguyen

Many believe that the top 3 target set by sponsor Tan Long for the SLNA coaching staff and players this season is too ambitious. With an inexperienced coaching staff (even forgetting to appoint a first vice-captain), and head coach Huy Hoang leading a team in the V.League for the first time, having to build a playing style true to SLNA's identity is truly overwhelming. Even with less than half of the newly promoted Binh Dinh team on the field, and without veteran players like Dinh Trong, Xuan Tu, and Van Thuan, coach Duc Thang still easily secured 3 points at Vinh Stadium.

Frankly, tens of thousands of fans in Nghe An province want SLNA to return to its traditional identity and quickly get back on track in the V.League. However, Tan Long's goal of winning a medal "immediately" in the 2022 V.League is making things difficult for the SLNA coaching staff and players. It's not just SLNA; other teams like HAGL, TP.HCM, and Saigon FC, who rushed into buying foreign players and coaches, also failed to achieve immediate success.

There's an old saying, "Haste makes waste," and that's true for SLNA's current situation. However, coach Huy Hoang must quickly find new foreign players and improve the team's playing style, requiring his players to move more and ensuring they always have more than one passing option. HAGL is a major challenge awaiting SLNA at the Vinh stadium.

An Thanh