Defeating U19 Ho Chi Minh City, U19 Song Lam Nghe An has a wide open door to enter the quarterfinals

In the final round of the 2025 National U19 Tournament, U19 Song Lam Nghe An is in group C with U19 Hong Linh Ha Tinh, U19 Ho Chi Minh City and U19 Binh Phuoc.

In the first match, U19 Song Lam Nghe An encountered many difficulties when they only managed a 2-2 draw against U19 Hong Linh Ha Tinh.

With 1 point in hand, coach Nguyen Huy Hoang's team only needs to win 3 points against Ho Chi Minh City to have a chance to advance to the quarter-finals with one round ahead. Because according to the regulations of the 2025 National U19 tournament, the 3 first-place teams, 3 second-place teams, and 2 teams with the best results in the 3 groups will be selected to play in the quarter-finals. Thus, looking at the correlation from the other 2 groups, after 2 rounds, U19 Song Lam Nghe An only needs to win 3 more points to have a chance to advance to the group stage.

Determined to win the second round, coach Nguyen Huy Hoang approached the match with a 3-4-3 formation - rich in attack. However, this did not seem to be very effective, as the opponent easily neutralized the attacks, while creating many dangerous counter-attacks.

Entering the second half, the Nghe An coach decided to change the team's formation by switching to a 4-2-3-1 formation, and at the same time, brought in two new players who had been seconded from the first team, midfielder Trong Tuan and striker Phung Van Nam.

This change immediately helped the Nghe An team play better. However, it was not until the 72nd minute, from a long pass from Van Linh, that Hoang Huu Nhat Sang received the ball in an open position, then rushed straight into the opponent's goal to unleash a tricky shot, hitting the Ho Chi Minh City net. The score was opened for U19 Song Lam Nghe An.

After scoring the goal, U19 Song Lam Nghe An played more calculatedly, focusing more on defense. And this was also an opportunity for Ho Chi Minh City to create some sharp attacks. One of them was in the last minute of extra time when Le Chinh took a close-range shot, but Bao Ngoc made an excellent save to save U19 Song Lam Nghe An from a clear loss.

After that situation, the referee blew the whistle to end the match. And with a minimal victory over U19 Ho Chi Minh City, U19 Song Lam Nghe An has a wide open door to play in the quarterfinals of the 2025 National U19 tournament.