Song Lam Nghe An: Is Top 3 possible?

Meanwhile, the teams that were temporarily ranked behind (although both had 20 points but had a lower goal difference) such as Topenland Binh Dinh and Hai Phong, or Viettel with 19 points, but with the win in round 14, they "overtook" the Vinh team to rank above. Specifically, the temporary ranking after round 14, Song Lam Nghe An dropped from 2nd place to 5th place behind Hanoi FC, Topenland Binh Dinh, Hai Phong, Viettel.

This is the lowest temporary ranking of Song Lam Nghe An since the beginning of the season and is it true that the team is gradually declining, moving further away from the top 3 target set before? Is Song Lam Nghe An gradually revealing many weaknesses for opponents to exploit while other teams with "opportunities" are rising strongly to turn the situation around and take a high position on the rankings?

Tran Dinh Hoang scored the opening goal for SLNA in the match against Hanoi FC at Vinh Stadium. Photo: Hai Hoang

The answer is not easy and the situation is not so pessimistic because in round 14, Song Lam Nghe An met a tough opponent who had won 7 consecutive matches against top teams such as Hai Phong, Hoang Anh Gia Lai, Viettel and Song Lam Nghe An in the first leg. So getting 1 point to end the opponent's winning streak is something that not every team can do, at home or away. Moreover, it can be seen that in round 14, the above-mentioned rising teams actually only met weak opponents, such as Topenland Binh Dinh meeting Becamex Binh Duong (4-1), Hai Phong meeting Ho Chi Minh City (4-3), Viettel meeting Dong A Thanh Hoa (3-1)... so them getting 3 points is not a "heavenly" thing.

The problem is that when there is an opportunity, the team that takes advantage of it will move up the rankings, the team that misses it will stand still (while others surpass them) and even fall as low as we have seen.

Also to say round 15 coming up,Lam River Nghe Anplaying away against Dong A Thanh Hoa, the opponent who held them to a draw and got 1 point on Vinh field in the first leg. Currently, Dong A Thanh Hoa is not in good form, and has a problem on the coaching bench when coach Petrovic is sick, so if the away team plays differently from the first leg, more suddenly, more explosively, then getting points, even 3 points is quite possible. At that time, the temporary rankings will continue to fluctuate and although depending on other teams, Song Lam Nghe An will certainly not be in the undesirable 5th position as it is now. But it will be very difficult for the away team because they have not played coherently against their neighbors for a long time. Not to mention the ability to take advantage of opportunities is not something Huy Hoang and his students always do well, like in the first leg for example, so it seems that everything is still ahead and very difficult to grasp. We should not rule out the possibility that the away team will return empty-handed because the home team has nothing left to lose and will rise strongly, especially after the recent loss to Viettel, which caused them to fall deep into the middle of the rankings (8th)? Therefore, if Huy Hoang does not carefully remind his students or suddenly encounters an unexpected situation from the referee, for example, the story will not know where to go?

Participating in this tournament, SLNA has all the pillars such as Que Ngoc Hai, Phan Van Duc, Xuan Manh, Oseni, Olaha... Especially, there is the return of captain Hoang Van Khanh, who has just recovered after a long time of injury. Photo courtesy of Chung Nguyen

In this round 15, there will be a competition between Topenland Binh Dinh and Hanoi FC and people are talking about another "stumbling block", causing the leading candidate for the championship to continue to be shortened before reaching the finish line. Of course, "Vietnam PSG" with strong domestic strength, good foreign players, experienced coaches, and getting into form after a difficult start is a well-founded hope to make V-League more attractive, more worth watching, determined to let Hanoi FC "alone, on a horse" gallop to the finish line in a boring, monotonous way.

Other matches such as Hoang Anh Gia Lai-Sai Gon FC, Da Nang-Hai Phong… will be opportunities for the teams above to accumulate points, competing directly with not only Song Lam Nghe An. Therefore, the only way is to play well in each match, enjoy it yourself without caring about other results.

The current concern is that Song Lam Nghe An is still in the process of finding the most suitable framework, while the force is always fluctuating due to penalty cards, performance, and tactical intentions in each match. The team has many famous players, many young stars, but lacks a real leader on the field. Not to mention, the foreign players are playing more and more dull, worryingly, causing Huy Hoang to sometimes helplessly withdraw from the field, accept foreign players, and play with only domestic players. It is very difficult to expect a top ranking, but if they fall out of the top 3, it is very regrettable and worth mentioning.

The road is still long, hopefully Song Lam Nghe An will play more and more solidly, gradually meeting the expectations of fans and waiting for higher achievements next season, in the coming time./.