SLNA - Dak Lak: The time to 'let go' has not come yet!

(Baonghean.vn) - On the afternoon of February 4, coach Nguyen Duc Thang and his team will have a match with Dak Lak in the first round of the National Cup. Neither the home team nor the away team are really eager to win.

After winning the V. League championship in 2011, the Nghe An team no longer had much ambition in the tournaments they participated in. Even in the V. League arena, SLNA still had to struggle for the goal of staying in the league, so the "secondary field" like the National Cup was only a formality.

This reality has existed for 5-6 years now and is still continuing without knowing when it will end. That shows that participating in the National Cup tournament is truly torture for teams in situations like SLNA. So, the sooner you “let go”, the better.

Saying that does not mean that SLNA can "let go" of Dak Lak in this first round. Because the match between SLNA and the team from the Central Highlands is the "first match" of coach Nguyen Duc Thang and his team in the new year of the Rooster. Therefore, even if they were "eating the courage of heaven", the Nghe An team would not dare to "lie on the field" to give Dak Lak a ticket to the next round. More than anyone, the SLNA coaching staff and players understand how dangerous it is if they deliberately lose the match.

SLNA's most important goal for the 2017 season is the audience's trust. Illustrative photo.

In the SLNA's launch ceremony for the 2017 season, the Board of Directors and the coaching staff of the Nghe An team considered the most important goal to be the trust of the audience. Speaking at the ceremony, head coach Nguyen Duc Thang emphasized: "We must play to make the people believe, to make the people love and be happy". If the Vinh team has just one more "below-strength" match, all the efforts in the last 4 matches in the V. League will become meaningless. Therefore, SLNA would not be foolish enough to "let go" of the team from the first division right at Vinh stadium in front of the home audience.

Moreover, even if SLNA wanted to give Dak Lak the ticket to play in the second round, it is likely that the Central Highlands team would not want to or would not dare to accept it. Looking at the list of 14 players of this team traveling to Vinh, it is enough to understand their indifference in the National Cup. To put it bluntly, the ticket to play in the round of 16 with Hanoi FC is almost in the hands of the Nghe An team. Therefore, even if SLNA wanted to leave the tournament early, it would not be possible because the opponent still has more legitimate reasons to do so.

Remember, last season, also in the first round of the National Cup at Vinh Stadium, SLNA had a match with the tough team S. Khanh Hoa. With the situation at that time, most people thought that coach Ngo Quang Truong and his team would "let go" of the coastal city team to save their strength for the main front, V. League. However, the final result was contrary to expectations, when SLNA advanced to the next round with a 1-0 victory.

It is worth mentioning that from the end of the first half, the Vinh home team only played with 10 men on the field after the referee showed a red card to midfielder The Nhat and sent him off. In such a favorable situation, coach Vo Dinh Tan and his team did not bother to take advantage of the opportunity to finish off the home team and win a ticket to the second round. S. Khanh Hoa's attitude is the general situation of the National Cup for a long time: not everyone who wants to lose can lose right away.

SLNA is likely to win quite easily against Dak Lak. Illustrative photo.

Unable to “let go” of their opponents, SLNA’s coaching staff had to consider this a good opportunity for their young players to gain experience, something that is rarely seen in the V. League. It is known that in football there is always an element of surprise, and everything becomes clear only after the referee blows the final whistle. However, in all aspects, SLNA is proving to be superior to the team from the Central Highlands. If the Vinh team is eliminated, it will be a real “earthquake” in the first round of the 2017 National Cup.

Well, the time to “let go” has not come yet, so we have to hold on. It is not too late to wait until we meet a more eager opponent and SLNA “leaves the tournament with their heads held high”. It is true that “giving up is a pity, holding on is a burden”!

Thanh Hung