Tet (Vietnamese New Year) for foreign players in Nghe An province.

(Baonghean)Having only recently arrived in Nghe An, the three foreign players of SLNA have already celebrated the traditional Vietnamese Lunar New Year. It was a little strange at first, but Biyaga, Ndjodo, and Moreira all shared the same feeling: it was exciting and full of joy.

Foreign players of SLNA.

On the 28th day of the Lunar New Year, after the last training session of the old year, the three foreign players of SLNA were moved to the Shanghai Hotel to begin their Tet holiday according to the regulations of the Nghe An team. In addition to the Tet bonus as stipulated by the club (one month's salary), the three foreign players of SLNA, namely Biyaga, Ndjodo, and Moreira, also received a daily food allowance of 1 million VND during Tet. Furthermore, sticky rice cakes, pickled onions, and other Tet foods were purchased by the SLNA administrative department and placed in the refrigerators of the three foreign players at the hotel.

During the three days of Tet (Lunar New Year), the foreign players from Nghe An province were honored to be personally welcomed to the homes of General Director Nguyen Hong Thanh, Coach Huu Thang, and many players who live in Vinh, such as Hong Viet, Hoang Thinh, and Ngoc Hai, to celebrate Tet together. A rather interesting anecdote recounted by the SLNA members is that, unfamiliar with the tradition of giving lucky money, no one was luckier than the foreign players, who only "received" and didn't have to "give." Everywhere they went, Biyaga, Ndjodo, and Moreira received colorful lucky money envelopes, and they thoroughly enjoyed this.

On New Year's Day, following in the footsteps of many other SLNA players, the team's foreign players also visited a temple to light incense and pray for peace in the new year. Since they had Tet (Lunar New Year) food in their rooms, the foreign players also invited friends to the hotel for a feast to celebrate the new year. According to many players from Nghe An province, the foreign players of the team were very excited about Tet. They said this was the first time they had eaten traditional foods like banh chung (sticky rice cake), pickled onions, and candied fruits.

Striker Biyaga shared: “On the evening of the first day of Tet (Vietnamese Lunar New Year), after toasting and drinking countless glasses of celebratory wine, I still didn't forget to go online and contact my relatives to tell them about Tet in Vietnam. Eating so many delicious and special dishes, and receiving so many lucky money envelopes everywhere I went was very impressive and surprising. My first time celebrating Tet in Vietnam was truly wonderful.”

This year, after the match against Thanh Hoa in round 3 on the 25th of the 12th lunar month, SLNA officially took a Tet holiday break. While many players far from home packed their bags to return to their hometowns to celebrate with their families, SLNA's foreign players continued to train diligently. Except for the 30th and 1st of Tet, when they were busy visiting teammates' homes for the holiday, they were regularly present at Vinh Stadium to train on their own. A member of the SLNA coaching staff said that their foreign players are very professional; even though everyone else spent their time visiting each other during Tet, Biyaga, Ndjodo, and Moreira still went to training as a matter of habit. Being far from home, their professional spirit is very strong, so even though they were given time off to rest, they never forgot their duties.

Because SLNA has an important away match against HA.GL on February 8th, the entire team reunited on the second day of Tet (Lunar New Year). While many domestic players were still unprepared due to the festive atmosphere, the three foreign players were different; they took to the field and trained very actively. Although SLNA's management still applied the Tet holiday regime for foreign players until the fifth day, Biyaga, Ndjodo, and Moreira all requested to check out of their hotel rooms and return to the team's headquarters for convenience in daily life and training.

To create a fresh atmosphere, SLNA signed three new foreign players this season, their first time in Vietnam. In the first three rounds, for various reasons, the players haven't been able to fully showcase their abilities. Wishing to create a warm and friendly atmosphere, where the team feels like home and their hometown is their homeland, SLNA's leadership decided to organize a joyful and festive Tet (Lunar New Year) celebration for the foreign players to foster a sense of camaraderie and motivate them to prove themselves and contribute to the team's success.

Vinh Liem