Viettel - SLNA: Opportunity divided in two

In many aspects, coach Lee Heung-sil’s team can hardly compare to the team from Nghe An. Besides the advantage of playing at home, Viettel is inferior to SLNA in terms of squad quality, battle experience, form and reputation. The above differences are obvious without needing to be explained.

However, in football, the team that is rated higher is not sure to win the final. Therefore, the winner of the match between Viettel and SLNA in round 8 of V.League 2019, taking place at Hang Day Stadium on the afternoon of May 5, is still a mystery. The opportunity is divided equally for both teams.

SLNA is in good form at the beginning of this season. Photo courtesy

It is true that SLNA has more advantages than Viettel, but the Nghe An team has been "cursed" by rookie teams, teams that have just entered the most prestigious arena of Vietnamese football for the first season. In recent seasons, SLNA has often performed disappointingly in matches against newly promoted teams in the V.League.

Since the 2016 season, the Vinh team has had a total of 6 matches against rookie teams (won 2, drew 2 and lost 2). In V.League 2016, the Nghe team won 1 match and lost 1 match against Saigon. In V.League 2017, SLNA was held to a draw by Ho Chi Minh City Club in both matches. In V.League 2018, coach Nguyen Duc Thang and his team lost 1 match and won 1 match against Nam Dinh.

In the first leg of V.League 2018, SLNA lost to Nam Dinh right at Vinh Stadium. Photo courtesy

Based on those statistics, it can be seen that the results of SLNA's confrontation with the rookie teams are very balanced. The story of "old ghosts bullying new ghosts" does not happen in the competitions between SLNA and the rookie teams.

Obviously, this is the basis for Viettel and their fans to believe in a positive result for the home team in the upcoming match against SLNA.

Will coach Nguyen Duc Thang and his team successfully break the curse or will they continue to repeat their mistakes? Let's wait and see./.