U21 Song Lam Nghe An suffered defeat in the opening match of the 2023 National U21 Youth Championship

Entering the final round of the 2023 National U21 Championship, U21 Song Lam Nghe An is in Group C with U21 Long An, U21 Kon Tum and U21 Dak Lak. In the opening match, U21 Nghe An will face U21 Kon Tum. This is considered a strong opponent, deciding the first and second place of U21 Song Lam Nghe An in Group C.

However, U21 Song Lam Nghe An is still rated higher than its opponent by experts. Because not only playing at home, U21 Nghe An also has many outstanding faces, trained through the V.League arena. However, in the opening match, the coaching staff of U21 Song Lam Nghe An only sent goalkeepers Nguyen Van Viet and Nguyen Van Bach, who are playing in the V.League, onto the field from the start. Other talented strikers such as defender Van Cuong and striker Xuan Dai were not included in the starting lineup.

As expected, as soon as the opening whistle blew, U21 Song Lam Nghe An took control of the match and attacked high to find opportunities. In order to limit the home team's strength, U21 Kon Tum proactively retreated their formation quite low towards their home field and were not afraid to play close. That made it difficult for U21 Song Lam Nghe An to approach the opponent's goal.

It was not until the 15th minute of the match that the Vinh home team found their first chance. From a set piece free kick on the right wing, the ball was hung in the right direction by Phan Ba ​​Quyen, but the central defender's header went too high over the goal of goalkeeper Bao Duy of Kon Tum U21.

In the first 30 minutes of the match, U21 Song Lam Nghe An deployed many attacking plans. From attacking directly in the middle, or bringing the ball down the sideline to cross inside, but the home team still could not penetrate the scientifically and tightly organized defense of Kon Tum. It was not until the 35th minute that U21 Song Lam Nghe An found the second chance of the match. From the left wing, a teammate crossed the ball accurately for Quang Vinh to fly and head the ball, but goalkeeper Bao Duy made an excellent save.

Not stopping there, in the 40th minute, U21 Song Lam Nghe An made a series of passes in front of the opponent's penalty area, but the home team midfielder's flick over goalkeeper Bao Duy's head did not go as intended.

Entering the second half, in order to strengthen the home team's attacking ability, the U21 Song Lam Nghe An coaching board decided to bring Ho Van Cuong and Phan Xuan Dai onto the field to replace Viet Manh and Khanh Toan.

In the 55th minute of the match, from a free kick close to the opponent's penalty area, Quang Vinh performed a technical curling shot, goalkeeper Duy Bao stood watching, but the crossbar denied U21 Song Lam Nghe An's clear opportunity.

Despite many attacks but not scoring any goals, U21 Song Lam Nghe An had to suffer a counterattack from the opponent. In the 73rd minute, after a combination on the left wing, his teammates let the ball pass to captain Dang Tho to rush in and shoot from a tight angle, defeating goalkeeper Van Viet of U21 Song Lam Nghe An, opening the score for U21 Kon Tum.

After conceding the goal, U21 Song Lam Nghe An tried to push up the formation to find an equalizer but failed. The match ended with a score of 1-0 in favor of U21 Kon Tum.

With this result, U21 Kon Tum and U21 Long An share the first and second positions in Group C, while U21 Song Lam Nghe An ranks second to last in the rankings.

On September 21, U21 Song Lam Nghe An will meet U21 Long An at Vinh Stadium./.