Song Lam Nghe An beat Binh Dinh in the reverse final

ChiefLam River Nghe Anand Binh Dinh are both on 13 points and are only separated by a goal difference, making the match a "do or die" encounter. Losing means falling into the play-off round and risking being narrowed by SHB Da Nang, or even surpassed.

Understanding the importance, Coach Phan Nhu Thuat deployed the strongest lineup with the familiar 4-2-3-1 formation. The defense consisted of Vuong Van Huy, Zaracho, Van Khanh and Ho Van Cuong. The midfield was taken care of by Khac Ngoc, Quang Vinh, Ngo Van Luong and Long Vu. The attack line had Olaha and Kuku as the main explosives.

With home advantage, Song Lam Nghe An proactively pushed up their formation from the start, especially taking advantage of the right wing where Ho Van Cuong was active. In the 2nd minute, he had an accurate cross, but Olaha's kick was a bit unlucky.

Not stopping there, from the central attack, a teammate headed the ball for Ngo Van Luong to shoot a live ball, but once again the ball flew wide of goalkeeper Huynh Tuan Linh's goal.

In the first 10 minutes of the match, Song Lam Nghe An played a diverse attacking style, interspersed with opening up the flanks and approaching the goal from the middle. This helped the Vinh home team create up to 4 opportunities to open the score. However, Olaha, Ngo Van Luong and Khac Ngoc could not convert them into goals.

On the other side of the front line, Binh Dinh chose an extremely disciplined defensive style of play and occasionally created counter-attacks. In the 30th minute, Hoang Minh had a dangerous long-range shot, but it was not enough to defeat goalkeeper Van Viet.

The first half ended with a 0-0 draw.

In the second half, in order to increase the variability in the attack, coach Phan Nhu Thuat decided to send Tran Manh Quynh onto the field to replace Ngo Van Luong. In the 52nd minute, this midfielder had a dangerous header, but goalkeeper Tuan Linh was able to block the ball.

Although Song Lam Nghe An persistently attacked, luck was not on their side. Especially in the 71st minute, from a cross from his teammate, Olaha flew to head the ball dangerously, but Tuan Linh still managed to dive to push the ball away. Kuku swooped in at the right time, but this striker's close-range shot was once again blocked by the away team's goalkeeper.

After many attempts to attack, finally in the 78th minute, Song Lam Nghe An broke the deadlock. From a pass-and-go with Khac Ngoc, Olaha decided to shoot from outside the opponent's penalty area. The force of the shot was strong, causing Tuan Linh to make a mistake and the ball slipped through his hands and flew into the goal. The score was opened for Song Lam Nghe An.

In the final minutes of the match, Binh Dinh pushed up their formation in the hope of finding an equalizer, but were unsuccessful. 1-0 in favor of Song Lam Nghe An was the final result of the match.