Losing the opening match of the season, SLNA broke many things

The home team pressed the field throughout the match, making 10 shots on target, while S.Khanh Hoa only had 1 shot but they still brought home 3 points. Objectively speaking, despite losing, the home team SLNA still had a match worth watching in terms of fighting spirit, playing style on the field and substitutions.

The attacking triangle of Ho Khac Ngoc, Phan Van Duc, Osmar Francisco of the Nghe An team continuously besieged the goal of national goalkeeper Tuan Manh. Starting with a 4-4-2 formation, with 2 strikers Osmar, Olaha, but in reality Olaha played low and tended to move to the left so that Van Duc could rise higher.

The owner has features

The intention of SLNA players to pass the ball through the middle and set up a free kick to get a free kick caused many difficulties for central defender Zarour Chaher and the S.Khanh Hoa defenders. However, the shots of Van Duc, Khac Ngoc, and Osmar were taken in situations where they were closely marked, so they either lacked power or were not very difficult.

Que Ngoc Hai and his teammates had an unsuccessful opening match. Photo: Thanh Cuong

Except for the shot from 17-18m by rookie Osmar that made goalkeeper Tuan Manh struggle to block, the other situations were not too difficult for this national player. With a height of 1.77m and many years of experience, he was good at clearing the high balls of the Nghe An team.

Foreign player Osmar showed that he is a player with quite complete technique, powerful shot and ability to sweep. However, this Brazilian striker needs more time to integrate, many times Osmar and The Cuong "stepped on each other's toes" on the right wing.

Meanwhile, Olaha had an unsuccessful debut match, often losing the ball and letting Quoc Chi and Tan Tai pass him. The two foreign players Osmar and Olaha played the highest in the 4-4-2 formation, but there was almost no connection. Coach Duc Thang's decision to push Khac Ngoc up high to play as an attacking midfielder was only a temporary solution, when the opponent was leading rather than his forte.

Last season, when Olaha played as a back-up, Phi Son was responsible for disrupting, assisting and scoring. Van Duc is considered a potential replacement for Phi Son but still needs time to improve.

Old ginger

Taking the field with an average age of 28, S.Khanh Hoa is certainly a team full of experience. Being forced to play, coach Vo Dinh Tan instructed his players to wait for the right moment. When SLNA players were waiting for the whistle to end the first half to receive instructions from the coaching staff for a new approach, S.Khanh Hoa rose up.

Van Duc and Khac Ngoc were the two best players in the opening match. Photo: Thanh Cuong

Left-back Manh Hung's mistake of slowly moving forward to catch offside was thoroughly exploited by striker Toure Youssouf. This foreign player quickly moved down to the left wing, close to the touchline, then turned the ball back to the second line. Receiving the ball from his teammate from a distance of only 4-5m, Lam Ti Phong did not give goalkeeper Van Hung any chance, even though this was the first and only situation of the whole match.

When Dinh Hoang was brought onto the field and Xuan Manh was pushed up to play as a midfielder, SLNA's attacking power increased significantly. The Vinh Stadium audience still wondered why they "wasted" this player for so long. Perhaps, being so absorbed in finding goals, the Nghe An players used many high balls and forgot about the 1.90m tall central defender Zarour, the second tallest player in the 2018 V-League.

A defeat has helped SLNA's coaching staff to uncover many problems. How to use the foreign pair effectively needs to be calculated more carefully, Xuan Manh needs to play as a midfielder to increase the attacking ability.