U19 SLNA lost again: Is it a "curse"?

Since the championship in 2006, U19 SLNA has not won a sixth cup for itself, although it still holds the record of 5 championships. While in recent years, the youth teams at SLNA, namely Nhi Dong (U11), Thieu Nien (U13), U15, U17 and U21, have all solved their "title thirst", U19 still has to sadly endure empty-handedness. 13 years - not a short period of time.

According to experts and football fans of Nghe An, U19 SLNA has not won recent tournaments for two reasons: the decline of SLNA's training center and at the same time the rise of other training centers such as Hanoi, HAGL, PVF, Viettel... However, there are still many people who believe that U19 SLNA is being haunted by the "curse" of empty-handedness.

Playing in the finals 5/13 times (2007, 2008, 2012, 2013 and 2014), along with hosting the tournament once (2015), but U19 SLNA still could not win the 6th championship. From the generation of Nguyen Trong Hoang, Hoang Van Binh, Nguyen Dinh Hiep... to Tran Nguyen Manh, Tran Phi Son, Vu Quang Nam, Ho Khac Ngoc, Que Ngoc Hai, Vo Ngoc Toan, Ho Tuan Tai, Phan Van Duc... all accepted "giving up" with the National U19 Finals.

U19 SLNA continues to miss out on the championship. Photo: slnafc

Not to mention the failure of coach Nguyen Van Tien and his team in this year's tournament is an example. Passing the qualifying round very convincingly (winning 6, drawing 2), U19 SLNA was in the same group B with U19 Hanoi, U19 B.Binh Duong and U19 Phu Yen in the final round. In the opening match, the young team from Nghe An defeated U19 B.Binh Duong with a score of 2-1, before sharing points with U19 Hanoi (1-1) and defeating U19 Phu Yen with a score of 2-0. U19 SLNA won the top spot in the group with an unbeaten record.

Speaking after the match U19 SLNA - U19 Hanoi (1 - 1) ended, coach Vu Quoc Viet of the capital team said: "In this tournament, I rate U19 SLNA the highest because they have players with the ability to make a difference in speed and very good physical strength. As for HAGL, I rate them as being able to reach the semi-finals, achieving the goal of being in the TOP 4 strongest teams. As for reaching the final match, I do not rate HAGL highly."

But things went in a different direction. U19 SLNA was "knocked out" by U19 HAGL with 2 goals coming from counter-attacks (the opening goal was scored from the penalty spot). Coach Nguyen Van Tien and his team accepted defeat in a match where they had a slight advantage in terms of game position and opportunities created. The 0-2 loss to U19 HAGL partly proved that U19 SLNA still had not been supported by luck in important moments.

When will U19 SLNA break the "curse" that has haunted them for the past 13 years?