Song Lam Nghe An before the match against Nam Dinh Club: Can we 'seize' the opportunity?

"Fire Pan"Thien Truong home field

As usual in the 2022 V.League season,Thien Truong Stadiumis still a solid support for Nam Dinh Club. After a difficult start, the Nam Dinh team had 2 consecutive home wins against opponents Viettel and Ho Chi Minh City Club. These valuable victories helped Nam Dinh Club create a 3-point gap with the bottom team Saigon.

Nam Dinh Club's playing style in recent years has been too dependent on foreign players. In the 2019 season, it was Diogo Pereira, in 2020 it was Do Merlo and Rafaelson, in V.League 2021 it was the duo Konan and Rodrigo. This year, the quality of their foreign strikers is not good, the team from Thanh Nam had to replace the striker duo with Diego Fagan and Victor Mansaray. Even the newcomers did not leave Nam Dinh fans with peace of mind. The former Song Lam Nghe An player Fagan is past his peak, and Mansaray has never been highly regarded both on the field and in his personal life. The American striker's goal against Ho Chi Minh City Club was his 11th goal after 37 matches in Vietnam.

Thien Truong Stadium's audience is famous for being enthusiastic. Photo: VPF

While struggling to find a suitable foreign striker, Nam Dinh also had to diligently sift through the sand to find a golden domestic player. A series of young players were introduced by the Nam Dinh team to V.League 2022, among the 13 players born after 2000 is striker Tran Ngoc Son (born in 2003) - who just scored a beautiful goal to seal a 2-1 victory over Ho Chi Minh City Club. However, Nam Dinh's most outstanding domestic player is probably Mai Xuan Quyet, who has been called up to Vietnam's youth teams many times.

With low quality personnel, the most frightening point of Nam Dinh Club is the fighting spirit. Playing at home at Thien Truong Stadium, with the cheers of nearly 10,000 people, always makes the people on the field play at more than 100% of their capacity. Except for the unlucky loss to Becamex Binh Duong, Hoang Anh Gia Lai or the top team Hanoi could only leave Thanh Nam with only 1 point. The current champion Viettel was even sadder when they left Thien Truong empty-handed. It can be said that Thien Truong is a solid support for Nam Dinh at this time.

Change or accept defeat?

Song Lam Nghe An has gone through 2 matches that were not as expected, more than ever the Nghe team needs a victory to lift their spirits. However, traveling to Nam Dinh has never been easy for Song Lam Nghe An. In the last 4 matches when coming to Thien Truong, the Nghe team has had to taste bitterness 3 times, the 3-2 victory in 2018 was too long ago.

Besides, the absence of Olaha and Hoang Van Khanh will make the situation of Song Lam Nghe An even more difficult. With Hoang Van Khanh, Pham The Nhat has replaced him quite well, while Olaha is still a big question mark for coach Huy Hoang. The plans given in the match with Dong A Thanh Hoa are still not effective, if they continue to play like this, it will be very difficult toLam River Nghe Anmake a name for yourself at Thien Truong.

The personnel situation is more positive when Phan Van Duc's injury is not a concern and the Nghe An team is testing foreign players to add quality to the midfield. If new elements are added in time and the way of playing is changed, it will be a surprise blow for the home team Nam Dinh. Because, the team from Thanh Nam seems to have "known" all the tricks of the Nghe An team.

Song Lam Nghe An lost to Nam Dinh three times in a row at Thien Truong Stadium. Photo: Trung Kien

Still know it is difficult toCoach Huy HoangChanging the playing style overnight, however, if there is no innovation in the playing style, sooner or later the Nghe An team will be figured out by the opponent. Locking down the two wings and neutralizing Phan Van Duc, then Song Lam Nghe An will become harmless.

In this round, Hanoi will face Hoang Anh Gia Lai at Hang Day, this is the best opportunity for Song Lam Nghe An to gain a favorable result, thereby continuing to hope in the race for the V.League championship.

Change or lose? Coach Huy Hoang will give the answer this weekend at Thien Truong Stadium.