Will U19 Song Lam Nghe An equal the record with Hanoi at the National U19 Tournament?

U19 Song Lam Nghe An players celebrate when their team wins the right to play in the final match. Photo: Chung Le

Win with perseverance and courage

At the 2023 National U19 Championship, U19 Song Lam Nghe An played with a stubborn and slow style. And now coach Nguyen Van Vinh's team is on the threshold of winning the 2023 National U19 Championship.

The highest mountain named U19 Hanoi has been overcome by Nghe An strikers and officially made this team become the former champion of U19 National. However, it must be said that the victory of U19 Song Lam Nghe An over U19 Hanoi was a difficult and courageous victory of coach Nguyen Van Vinh's students.

Returning to this key match, not beyond the fans' expectations, the confrontation between the two most successful teams in the National U19 Tournament took place in an exciting and dramatic manner.

Van Quy's beautiful long-range shot opened the score for U19 Song Lam Nghe An. Photo: Chung Le

The first half witnessed an impressive performance by U19 Song Lam Nghe An. In the 4-2-3-1 formation built by coach Nguyen Van Vinh, with the vertical axis consisting of Van Bac, Quang Vinh and Van Quy. These 3 players created a solid framework, a lever for teammates to penetrate the goal of U19 Hanoi. Although not controlling the ball too well, U19 Song Lam Nghe An demonstrated a very reasonable playing style, both creating enough pressure to expose the opponent's defense, and reducing the pressure on the back line.

The proof is that in the first 45 minutes, coach Nguyen Van Vinh's students had 3 shots on target, 1 of which was converted into a goal. Realizing that the defense system of U19 Hanoi played disciplined and tight, the coaching staff of U19 Song Lam Nghe An asked the students to boldly shoot from a distance when there was an opportunity. That reasonable strategy of the Nghe coaching staff helped Van Quy open the score with a kick outside the opponent's penalty area.

After the opening goal, U19 Song Lam Nghe An still played steadily and actively controlled the match. The two central midfielders, Van Bac and Quang Vinh, clearly showed their roles when they overwhelmed the midfield of Hanoi. Coach Duong Hong Son's team did not have much of the ball to launch attacks. In addition, the lines were also divided by Nghe An players, which brought a successful match to the team of coach Nguyen Van Vinh.

However, in the second half, "the wind changed direction", U19 Song Lam Nghe An lost the initiative in the match. Some fans thought that U19 Nghe An should not have defended in the second half, only to lose the game and concede the equalizer in the extra minute of the match. However, the tactics proposed by the coaching staff of U19 Song Lam Nghe An were not wrong. Because in this half, captain Van Bac was injured and could not play. That affected the ability to control the ball in the midfield of the Nghe team. In addition, in the first 45 minutes, coach Nguyen Van Vinh's students exerted too much effort and had to play under the harsh hot weather, so their physical strength was significantly worn out. Therefore, switching tactics from attack to counter-attack defense is an understandable solution.

The entire U19 Song Lam Nghe An team celebrates after winning against U19 Hanoi in the semi-finals. Photo: Chung Le

Although U19 Hanoi dominated the game in the second half, they did not create many opportunities. Coach Duong Hong Son's team only had 4 shots on target in this half. However, an individual mistake in the last minute of extra time by U19 Song Lam Nghe An helped Hanoi equalize the score.

It was thought that the spirit of the Nghe An players would collapse when the match went to a nerve-wracking penalty shootout. However, with courage and resilience, coach Nguyen Van Vinh's students overcame U19 Hanoi to win the right to play in the final match of the 2023 National U19. This also meant that U19 Hanoi became the former champion of this year's tournament.

Standing at the threshold of heaven

After opening the most difficult door called U19 Hanoi, U19 Song Lam Nghe An is only one win away from the championship. The opponent of coach Nguyen Van Vinh and his team in the final match is U19 Thanh Hoa. This is a team that is no longer unfamiliar to the players of Nghe An. Because in the group stage, U19 Song Lam Nghe An once drew 1-1 with the neighboring team.

However, it must be affirmed that U19 Thanh Hoa under the leadership of foreign coach Svetislav plays more and more perfectly. In the hands of the Serbian coach, there are quite quality factors such as Ngoc My, Tien Dat, Thanh Nam. Along with an even force spread across all 3 lines, coach Svetislav brings to the Thanh team a very pragmatic and effective playing style. That is shown through the results at the National U19 finals this year.

Specifically, U19 Thanh Hoa advanced to the final with a very high scoring efficiency (11 goals, after 5 matches). Those data show that defeating this opponent is not an easy thing.

Thanh Hoa's aggressive playing style caused many difficulties for Song Lam Nghe An's midfield. Photo: Chung Le

However, if we consider each individual and the way of building the playing style, U19 Song Lam Nghe An is still considered to be slightly better. This was shown in the confrontation between the two teams in the group stage. Statistics show that U19 Song Lam Nghe An controlled the ball up to 59%, with 14 shots, of which 5 were on target. Meanwhile, Thanh Hoa only had a total of 4 shots. This shows that if U19 Song Lam Nghe An knows how to make the most of the opportunities they create, they can completely control the game when facing the neighboring team.

Also according to information from the team, Van Bac has recovered after being stunned and had to be substituted in the semi-final match. He can completely start in the official lineup of U19 Song Lam Nghe An. The remaining players are all in quite good physical condition.

With the strength and experience that the Nghe An team has, Nghe An audiences expect U19 Song Lam Nghe An to overcome the threshold of heaven, to equal the National U19 Championship record that U19 Hanoi is holding.