Losing to SLNA, Thanh Hoa coach complained about the referee

In the first leg of the 2018 National Cup semi-final in Thanh Hoa, the home team took an early advantage when Pape Omar jumped high to head the ball into the net after the away team's goalkeeper failed to make an effort in the 13th minute of the match.

However, on a day when the Thanh team's defense was quite loose, Thanh Hoa lost 2-3 in the end. At the post-match press conference, coach Nguyen Duc Thang of FLC Thanh Hoa complained about the way referee Truong Hong Vu officiated in this match.

SLNA has a big advantage before the second leg in September. Photo: Xuan Thuy

The home team’s head coach said: “The way the referees handled the game on the field today was not good. Obviously, SLNA had many situations where they tackled the ball more than necessary and aggressively, but referee Truong Hong Vu was not really strict in penalizing the Nghe An team.”

Talking about the performance of the two teams and the result of this match, Mr. Thang added: “I have no opinion about this match. Thanh Hoa Club deserved to lose. The absence of key players Hoang Thinh, in addition to having to exert themselves in the match against Hanoi team 4 days ago, made the players quickly lose strength, leading to the defense not playing well.”

On the opposite side, SLNA's coach Nguyen Duc Thang could not hide his concern about the injury of his favorite student Pham Xuan Manh. "Xuan Manh's injury is quite serious. I don't know if Manh can join the Vietnam U23 team or not? The possibility of him playing in the 2018 International U23 tournament is not high," Mr. Thang shared.

After the first leg, the two teams will have the second leg at Vinh Stadium on September 5. With this result, Thanh Hoa will have to win by at least 2 goals or win by 1 goal but with a score of 3-2, 4-3 to have a chance to overcome SLNA to play in the final.

According to the 2018 National Cup regulations, the champion team will receive a prize of 1 billion VND, the runner-up team will receive 500 million VND and the third place team will receive 200 million VND. Thus, if they reach the final, the Nghe An team will surely receive a prize of 500 million VND. In addition, for each win in the round of 16 and quarter-finals, SLNA will also receive a prize of 20 million VND and 30 million VND.

Nghe An audience was unfair to Song Lam Nghe An?

(Baonghean.vn) - Although it is the World Cup season, the appeal of V.League has somewhat decreased. However, to be fair, coach Nguyen Duc Thang and his team still played well during the most difficult period but were somewhat disadvantaged because the home stadium was empty of spectators.