SLNA – TP HCM: Home team takes advantage of victory?

On the V.League rankings after round 21, SLNA is temporarily ranked 4th with 30 points, but with the fierce competition of the tournament, the Nghe team will find it difficult to maintain their current position if they lose in the upcoming match. The gap with the teams below is only from a draw to a win.

Meanwhile, Ho Chi Minh City FC with 38 points on the rankings, is far behind Hanoi FC with 43 points. The remaining 5 matches are all considered finals and the away match against SLNA is also important for Ho Chi Minh City as they are competing for the championship.

One of the factors that made the match at Vinh Stadium on August 25 dramatic and worth waiting for was the return of coach Nguyen Huu Thang as team president and former SLNA players Hoang Thinh, Quang Nam and Phi Son.

In this match, the away team TP. HCM will suffer a big loss when "conductor" Do Van Thuan has received 3 yellow cards and has to sit out the match. Since the first leg, the team led by coach Chung Hae Seong has surprised by removing Joel Vinicius and adding striker V. Mansaray. This striker born in 1997 has scored 4 goals for the team after only 7 appearances.

In the first leg, SLNA could not bring home 1 point at Thong Nhat Stadium despite playing with full determination. Photo: Nguyet Ha

Meanwhile, SLNA may welcome the return of player Pham Xuan Manh. The former U23 Vietnam player has recovered from his injury from the previous round and in this match, he can completely play to fill the position of wing midfielder that is currently in crisis for SLNA.

However, SLNA cannot deploy foreign player Joel Vinicius due to the agreements between the two teams in the loan contract for the Brazilian player. Thus, it is likely that striker Ho Tuan Tai will be returned to his favorite position as a striker by SLNA's coaching board.

Remember in the first leg at Thong Nhat Stadium, SLNA had a determined match and got an equalizer from Ho Khac Ngoc but coach Duc Thang and his team still had to accept a 1-2 loss. And this time when returning to Vinh Stadium, the Nghe An team will definitely want to repay this debt and continue to regain the trust of the fans.

In terms of history, the two teams have met a total of 10 times, in which SLNA still has the advantage with 5 wins, 3 draws and 2 losses. However, compared to previous seasons, this year, TP. HCM is rated much higher than SLNA due to the presence of a Korean coach and players who are in good form.

Expected SLNA lineup for the match against Ho Chi Minh City. Graphics: Trung Kien

Although SLNA is not a team with a strong attack (24 goals), it is still considered to have the most solid defense in V.League 2019 (20 goals conceded). The best defense in V.League will face a very strong attack from Ho Chi Minh City (33 goals). SLNA's already weakened attack will also face a defense that is not too bad, having only conceded 23 goals this season.

As for the Nghe An team, the home team can completely expect a miracle from Ho Tuan Tai, a player who has been in high form recently with 7 goals, along with other players leading the domestic top scorer list.

Recently, the list of 27 players who gathered for the Vietnam national team to prepare for the match against Thailand did not include any faces currently wearing SLNA jerseys. And that could be a big motivation, touching the pride of SLNA players who were forgotten by Coach Park Hang-seo.

EXPECTED LINEUP

SLNA:TM Nguyen Manh, Dinh Hoang, Van Khanh, Damir Memovic, Xuan Manh, Ngoc Toan, Khac Ngoc, Quang Tinh, Michael Olaha, Tuan Tai.

Ho Chi Minh City:TM Thanh Thang, Ngoc Thinh, Ngoc Duc, Cong Thanh, Tung Quoc, Huu Tuan, Anh Tuan, Cong Hien, Hoang Thien, Quang Nam, V. Mansaray.

Midfielder Tran Phi Son recovers from injury, waiting for the day to reunite with SLNA

(Baonghean.vn) - After a period of injury treatment, midfielder Tran Phi Son may return to play in V.League 2019 in the match against his old team Song Lam Nghe An at Vinh Stadium.