Song Lam Nghe An early 'gives up' National Cup 2021
(Baonghean.vn) - Song Lam Nghe An continued their poor streak with a 0-1 loss to First Division team Pho Hien Club in the 2021 National Cup.
SLNA entered the first round of the 2021 National Cup with nothing more than a victory to end the crisis period. That goal became even easier when their opponent in this round wasPho Hien– The team is playing in the First Division and has only got 2 points after 4 rounds.
A victory against this team will be a huge morale boost for coach Ngo Quang Truong and his team entering the next 3 important matches of phase 1 of V.League 2021.
However, in the absence of captain Hoang Van Khanh, SLNA only fielded reserve players and kept Van Hoang, Van Duc, and Xuan Manh on the bench.
 |
| SLNA starting lineup. Photo: Hai Hoang |
The first minutes of the match,SLNAactively took control of the ball and put maximum pressure on the home team's goal. However, with too many key players on the bench, the away team had a lot of difficulty in launching an attack. Most notably was Manh Quynh's unfortunate miss in the 36th minute of the match.
The first half of the match was played with low quality. Pho Hien Club had more chances to open the score but were unsuccessful.
In the second half, the home team unexpectedly scored the opening goal. Player Lam Thuan easily opened the score for the First Division representative when he tricked goalkeeper Van Tien in a very quick escape, scoring 1-0 for Pho Hien in the 53rd minute.
 |
| SLNA stopped early at the 2021 National Cup. Photo: Hai Hoang |
With the opening goal, Pho Hien proactively slowed down the game to protect their net. Meanwhile, SLNA still encountered many difficulties in launching attacks as well as approaching the opponent's goal.
It was not until the 73rd minute that SLNA sent on the field some regular starters such as Thai Ba Sang and Bui Dinh Chau, however, the number 1 star Phan Van Duc was still not used. Not using Van Duc shows that the Nghe team gave up the National Cup to focus on the V.League 2021 arena.
In the end, SLNA lost 0-1 to Pho Hien, thereby being eliminated from the 2021 National Cup.
STARTING LINEUP
Pho Hien: Thai Hieu, Van Hoa, Duy Lam, Quang Truong, Lam Thuan, Duc Loi, Xuan Duong, Viet Anh, Hoang Huy, Tien Dat, Vu Tin.
SLNA: Van Tien, Ngoc Duc, The Nhat, Xuan Thang, Sy Hoang, Sy Sam, Nguyen Van Duc, Dinh Thang, Manh Quynh, Xuan Binh, Van Viet.
