Song Lam Nghe An - Nam Dinh: Will it cross the red line?

Trong Hoang and his teammates had a great match against Binh Duong. Photo: Xuan Thuy

Sad days at Vinh stadium

Since the beginning of the season until now,Lam River Nghe Anstill not know the taste of victory. The Vinh Stadium team drew 5 matches in V.League 2023 and lost right in the preliminary round of the National Cup 2023. This is a very sad achievement for a team that is considered to have the longest tradition in Vietnam. A team that used to be a force in the domestic league, owning 2 V.League championships and 3 National Cups. Perhaps it must be admitted that at that time, Song Lam Nghe An could win any team they wanted. And Vinh Stadium is likened to a fire pan, a place where "it's easy to go, hard to return" for many big teams in V.League.

Back then, this stadium was always packed with spectators whenever the home team played.

However, that is no longer the case. Song Lam Nghe An now really wants to find a victory right on their “holy land” to appease public opinion, but it is too difficult.

Only a few loyal spectators were still present at Vinh Stadium to cheer on their team. Photo: Duc Anh

Vinh Stadium this season is becoming desolate and cold every time Song Lam Nghe An plays. The away teams no longer feel scared like before, they come here with a confident mentality, coming to win.

For example, SHB Da Nang, currently at the bottom of the table, still earned 1 point at Vinh Stadium. Hai Phong did even better when they were ready to play an open game, at times completely dominating the game, and created many opportunities against the Nghe An club and they left with a 1-1 draw.

Saying that, Song Lam Nghe An is now just a shadow of the past. No longer possessing the powerful “weapons” that make other teams wary. 5 points after 5 rounds, that poor performance has made many Nghe An audiences dissatisfied and disappointed.

On almost all websites, fans’ criticisms are directed at Song Lam Nghe An. Fans seem to have reached rock bottom. It seems that they no longer want to care about the results when Song Lam Nghe An competes.

If Nghe An's audience has truly lost faith in their team, then I wonder what the atmosphere at Vinh Stadium will be like in the future?; What will happen to the Song Lam Nghe An brand?; Will the sponsors continue to stick together or not?...

Positive signal

An interesting detail in the 2012 season, Song Lam Nghe An went through the first 5 rounds with 4 draws and 1 loss. However, in round 6, the Vinh home team won Hoang Anh Gia Lai with a score of 2-0, and then ended that season with coach Huu Thang's team in 4th place overall. That said, drawing the first 5 rounds is not a tragedy for Song Lam Nghe An. If they know how to look back at the past to regain confidence and fight their best in the next rounds, Song Lam Nghe An can still finish with a result that makes fans satisfied.

Looking back at round 5 of V.League 2023, although Song Lam Nghe An did not win at home, they left a quite convincing performance.

"In this match, the players played with all their might and this was the best match of the season so far for Song Lam Nghe An" - Coach Huy Hoang shared.

In the match against Binh Duong in round 5 of V.League 2023, Song Lam Nghe An had many opportunities, but only one goal was scored. Photo: Xuan Thuy

In that match, although Song Lam Nghe An did not control the ball too much, they found many solutions to be able to approach the opponent's goal. The proof is that the Vinh home team made more than 20 shots on target, had up to 6 opportunities that could have been converted into goals, but only succeeded once.

In addition to improving the attack, it seems that coach Huy Hoang has found the optimal solution for the defense. The Nghe An coach decided to send Que Ngoc Hai to support Ho Van Cuong on the right wing. The defender wearing the number 30 shirt, when returned to his strong wing, has fully demonstrated his inherent ability. He attacks and defends rhythmically, creating many high-damage passes. Thereby creating many opportunities for his teammates to score. In addition, Que Ngoc Hai often moves up as a full-back to diversify the attack for Song Lam Nghe An.

On the left wing, Tran Dinh Hoang coordinated quite well with Thai Ba Sang. Thereby, Song Lam Nghe An's defense locked down the top strikers in V.League such as Rimario, Tien Linh, Bui Vy Hao... Making them not have many opportunities to find a way into Van Hoang's goal. Binh Duong's goal only came from luck, when Vi Hao's free kick hit the wall, changing the trajectory, making it impossible for goalkeeper Van Hoang to block.

With the positive signals analyzed above, Song Lam Nghe An still has every reason to think about their first victory against Nam Dinh, even though they have to play away at Thien Truong.

On the other hand, the home team Nam Dinh seems to have not yet regained the form they had at the beginning of the season. In round 5, the team from the Southern region struggled to keep 1 point against Khanh Hoa. Nam Dinh was led by Khanh Hoa and it was not until the 90+3 minute that they scored a controversial goal.

If coach Huy Hoang can come up with a reasonable strategy and strike at the right time, Song Lam Nghe An can still make the whole Thien Truong stadium quiet...

The match between Song Lam Nghe An - Nam Dinh will take place at 6:00 p.m., April 11 at Thien Truong Stadium.

Duc Anh