V-League 2023: 3 rounds and interesting surprises

The first surprise is that the top 3 positions temporarily belong to 3 teams: Hanoi FC, Nam Dinh Steel Blue and Dong A Thanh Hoa when they all won 7 points after 2 wins, 1 draw and the capital team is ranked higher due to having the best goal difference (+3 compared to +2 of the 2 teams below).

In this match, Song Lam Nghe An has the return of young midfielder Dinh Xuan Tien - who was absent in the previous 2 rounds due to injury. Photo courtesy of Chung Le

Hanoi FC is the clearest proof of surprise and inevitability when they are a team that usually starts slowly, then accelerates to the finish line. But this season shows a pictureHanoi FCboth familiar and different when "warming up" very early, a Van Quyet who has both achieved high performance as usual and proven his sharpness in scoring (4 goals in 3 matches, leading the tournament). In the two opening matches against 2 tough opponents Viettel and Cong An Ha Noi, they both quickly proved the mettle of the defending champion team, so the fact that they "slipped away" like this now further shows that this is the number 1 championship candidate and not anyone else?

After a long period of being in the relegation group, this season, Nam Dinh Green Steel has received a big investment with great ambition, becoming stronger and "more steely", so they won 7 points after 3 matches, even if they played more focused, the Thanh Nam team could have won 3 points against Hoang Anh Gia Lai and "sat comfortably" on top of the table. Of course, in the upcoming round 4, Nam Dinh Green Steel will be "tested" for real when meeting Viettel at Hang Day Stadium, everything will become clearer, is it "genuine steel" or not/not yet?

Striker wearing the number 98 jersey Jordy Soladio of Song Lam Nghe An calmly finished into the far corner, defeating goalkeeper Van Toan, scoring the equalizer for the home team. File photo Chung Le

Meanwhile, this season, Dong A Thanh Hoa brought in foreign coach Popov and former top scorer Bruno to prove their ambition and in fact they did what they wanted, when they won 2 matches, including 1 away match at Khanh Hoa. However, the fact that they let the away teamLam River Nghe AnThe draw at home in round 2 showed that what is not satisfactory is the ability to penetrate against teams that play tough and alert defense.

In the upcoming 4th round, Dong A Thanh Hoa will meet Hanoi FC at Hang Day Stadium. This match will help Hanoi FC continue to lead if they win all 3 points. If there is a draw, the two teams may hold each other back and the next team like Thep Xanh Nam Dinh (if they have a good result against Viettel?) or Binh Dinh (very likely to win 3 points even though they have to face SHB Da Nang away) will surpass them in this interesting and attractive race. In case the home team unexpectedly loses, Mr. Doan's team will "take the throne" and "reign" there until April after the V-League break.

In the bottom group, Ho Chi Minh City lost all 3 consecutive matches, which is not surprising for many reasons. Last season, this team had to "doping rewards" extremely strongly to stay in the league. This season, internal turmoil related to salaries and bonuses continues to erode the necessary force and confidence. Two of those many reasons have actually made the team quickly identified as a relegation candidate and of course it is very difficult for them to turn the tables when the result is a round zero. Close to this team is SHB Da Nang when they have only 1 point in 3 matches and the possibility of losing points in the 4th round is also "feasible". Last season, SHB Da Nang also started slowly and disappointingly. This season, the situation has not changed much, so the fact that they are still in the "red light" group seems to be the "default" in the football village, no matter how talented Mr. Thanh Hung is?

Van Quyet continues to shine, helping Hanoi FC win on Ha Tinh field. Photo courtesy of Xuan Thuy

The two teams have drawn 3 consecutive matches, with the same goal difference of 3/3 and 2/2, Hoang Anh Gia Lai and Song Lam Nghe An, temporarily ranked 8th and 9th, but they will likely soon separate in two different directions. Hoang Anh Gia Lai is currently ranked higher due to the number of goals (3 compared to 2). Obviously, the young Hoang Anh Gia Lai team is playing better than the young Song Lam Nghe An team when looking at the actual performance in the matches against Binh Duong and Thep Xanh Nam Dinh, both on the away field of the mountain town team. A narrow victory was very close for this team if they could keep their concentration in the final minutes. A loss was saved with a late goal by Brandao in the match at Thien Truong Stadium. Those things prove that Kiatisuk's team is playing well, lively, full of will and gradually they will progress, mature, and be confident. In the upcoming round 4, Hoang Anh Gia Lai will face difficulties at Hang Day Stadium when facing Cong An Ha Noi, a team that has just lost 2 consecutive matches against strong teams. If they can withstand the "heat" like the match in round 3, Kiatisuk and his students will have the opportunity to escape the stagnation of all draws like the past and turn to a new page.

On the contrary, the young team of Vinh city is playing soullessly, lacking creativity, it is difficult to hope for any breakthrough in the upcoming matches? Round 4 against Khanh Hoa is sublime at home, it is not easy for Song Lam Nghe An to get 3 points. They are currently ranked 9th, meaning they are out of the top 8 according to the plan, so they definitely need to make a big step forward to hope that everything will be okay, not repeating the shameful "broken promise" like last season.

Of course, football is full of surprises, it can be right or wrong with every prediction, even of the most knowledgeable person, of the best expert or the fans. Hopefully, V-League 2023 will go from one surprise to another… normal, as everyone is seeing “having money means winning” and “having money but only… failing” as just proven through the 3 rounds mentioned above?./.