Song Lam Nghe An lost when visiting The Cong Viettel

After the regrettable draw in round 19 of V-League 2024/25 ofLam River Nghe AnBefore Quang Nam, they could not escape the relegation race. Currently, coach Phan Nhu Thuat's team is still in 12th place on the rankings.

In round 20, Song Lam Nghe An faced many challenges when they had to face The Cong Viettel at Hang Day Stadium. Despite facing a strong opponent, the Nghe An team did not have the services of two key players, Zaracho (injured) and Khac Ngoc (3 yellow cards).

This has brought a "headache" to the coach from Nghe An, when he was forced to use the domestic central defender duo Le Van Thanh and Tran Nam Hai.

The wings are in charge of Van Huy and Dinh Hoang. The 4 midfielders playing right above are: Ba Quyen, Quang Vinh, Ngo Van Luong and Ho Van Cuong. The 2 players playing highest on the attack line are Xuan Tien and Olaha.

Thus, in this match, Song Lam Nghe An only fielded 1 foreign player in the starting lineup.

With a broken squad and having to play away, as soon as the ball started rolling, Song Lam Nghe An players proactively played low and gave control of the ball to the opponent. However, coach Phan Nhu Thuat's students were the first team to put pressure on the opponent's goal.

In the 6th minute, from a counter-attack, Olaha got the ball in the middle, he made a bold breakthrough, but could not get past goalkeeper The Tai.

Immediately, the home team responded with Thanh Binh's close-range shot from a free kick on the left wing, but goalkeeper Van Viet reacted promptly to block it.

The away team did not control the ball as much as The Cong Viettel, but had more clear opportunities. In particular, if Van Luong or Olaha had been faster and more accurate, Song Lam Nghe An could have opened the score of the match.

The most regrettable situation was the situation that Ho Van Cuong missed in the 26th minute of the match. Before that, Xuan Tien had handled the ball reasonably, eliminating the opponent's defense and then passed the ball right in the momentum of the SLNA defender wearing the number 8 shirt. However, Van Cuong, in the face-to-face situation with the opponent's goalkeeper, kicked the ball away unintentionally.

After a series of opportunities created by SLNA, it was the home team's turn to speak up. In the 35th minute, from a chaotic situation in front of Van Viet's goal (SLNA), the ball came to Nham Manh Dung's feet, this striker fired a powerful shot but missed the away team's goal.

In the second half, Song Lam Nghe An continued to show a reasonable playing style. Especially in the 52nd minute, Viettel's net shook after Van Thanh's close-range finish in a corner kick situation, but the referee team determined that Van Cuong's corner kick had sent the ball out of bounds.

The middle of the second half witnessed strong pressure from the home team, in the 73rd minute, Huu Nam made a dangerous close-range header, but fortunately Van Viet reacted promptly to block it.

However, the home team did not have to regret too much because in an attack in the penalty area, Quang Vinh fouled Cong Phuong (The Cong Viettel). After checking VAR, the referee pointed to the penalty spot.

Pedro Henrique did not miss the opportunity to score against Song Lam Nghe An to open the score for The Cong Viettel.

In the final minutes of the match, the audience witnessed the efforts of the away team, but all efforts of Olaha and his teammates were unsuccessful.

Thus, with the loss to The Cong Viettel, Song Lam Nghe An will face many difficulties in the journey to stay in the league this season.