U21 Song Lam Nghe An drew with U21 PVF in a formality match in the qualifying round of the National U21 Championship.
Since both teams had already secured their places in the 2025 National U21 Championship finals, U21 Song Lam Nghe An proactively chose to draw with U21 PVF in the final qualifying match. The match took place on the afternoon of July 14th at the PVF Football Training Center stadium.
Before entering the final match of the 2025 National U21 Championship qualifiers against U21 PVF,U21 Song Lam Nghe AnU21 Song Lam Nghe An has already secured their place in the final round. With 7 points after 3 matches, Coach Pham Anh Tuan's team is temporarily ranked second in the standings. Meanwhile, U21 Hanoi Police is in third place with 6 points but has completed all 4 matches, while U21 Dong A Thanh Hoa only has 1 point and no longer has a chance to compete. This means that, regardless of the result of the final match, U21 Song Lam Nghe An is guaranteed a spot in the next round.
With a relaxed mindset and a desire to rest key players, coach Pham Anh Tuan fielded a team with many reserve players. This caused U21 Song Lam Nghe An to be somewhat at a disadvantage against U21 PVF right from the opening whistle.
Playing true to their familiar style, U21 PVF quickly took control of the game and launched attacks towards the goal of U21 Song Lam Nghe An. Thanks to their short passing game and agile movement, the home team continuously put pressure on Bao Ngoc's (SLNA) goal. The opening goal came from a set piece in the 2nd minute. From a corner kick lofted into the center, the ball found Phuc Tai, and he didn't miss the opportunity to unleash a quick shot, sending the ball into the top corner of the U21 Song Lam Nghe An net.
Despite falling behind, U21 Song Lam Nghe An did not rush to push forward. They continued to maintain their familiar defensive counter-attacking style, focusing on long passes to exploit the spaces on both flanks. This approach gradually proved effective, causing considerable difficulties for the U21 PVF defense.
After several promising but inaccurate attacking moves, the Nghe An team finally scored the equalizer in the 37th minute. From a skillful run down the wing by Long Vu, the ball was accurately crossed to the far post for Vuong Quoc Dung to head home, giving the U21 PVF goalkeeper no chance to save it.
The remainder of the first half was evenly matched, with both teams playing cautiously and not creating many more dangerous situations. The score remained 1-1 at the end of the first half.
In the second half, U21 Song Lam Nghe An maintained a moderate pace of play and did not push their formation too high in search of a goal. However, in a lightning-fast counter-attack, Hai Nam of U21 PVF committed a dangerous foul on a Song Lam Nghe An midfielder, and the referee quickly issued a second yellow card, sending him off.
Despite having a numerical advantage, U21 Song Lam Nghe An did not push forward to seek a goal, but instead opted for slow, coordinated passes in midfield. As a result, the players from Nghe An did not create many dangerous opportunities towards the U21 PVF goal.
Conversely, the home team, playing with ten men, concentrated most of their players in their own half to secure a draw. Therefore, the match ended with a final score of 1-1.
With this result, U21 Song Lam Nghe An and U21 PVF both secured tickets to the final round of the 2025 National U21 Championship.
