One-time symbol of Saigon Port Club passes away

The one-time symbol of Saigon Port Club, talented midfielder Ho Van Loi passed away at the age of 56 after a serious illness.

Ho Van Loi (holding the cup) and Saigon Port Club won the national championship - Photo archive

At 1:45 a.m. on November 12, former midfielder Ho Van Loi of Saigon Port Club passed away at the age of 56 after a serious illness.

Mr. Ho Van Loi was born in 1970 in Hue in a family passionate about football. He has an older brother, Ho Van Tam, who plays as a central defender for Saigon Port Club.

Due to his small stature, Ho Van Loi was eliminated right from the talent selection round. However, his talent and will to play football helped "Old Laugher" - his nickname - leave an impression on the late coach Pham Huynh Tam Lang. And then he became the soul of the midfield of Saigon Port Club - a once iconic team of Ho Chi Minh City football.

He was the top scorer of the National Championship (later named V-League) 2001-2002 with 9 goals, 1 more than striker Emeka Achilefu ( Nam Dinh ), contributing greatly to helping Saigon Port Club win the national championship for the third time.

Previously, Ho Van Loi also contributed to helping Saigon Port Club win the national championship twice in 1993-1994 and 1997, and the National Cup twice in 1992 and 2000.

Despite his success with Saigon Port FC, Ho Van Loi never played for the national team in an official tournament. That is perhaps the greatest regret of this talented former player.

During the days Ho Van Loi lay in bed fighting for his life, his former teammates organized many friendly matches to raise money to support him. However, he left his family, friends and teammates in the early morning of November 12.

Former football star Nguyen Hong Pham (Saigon Port) - who organized a friendly match to raise funds for his old teammate - could not hide his sadness when Ho Van Loi passed away.

He said: "Ho Van Loi is an indispensable part of Saigon Port Club and Ho Chi Minh City football. He has made practical contributions to the country's football field. At the end of his life, he still put on his shoes and went out to the field, passing on all his enthusiasm and passion to his juniors.

Knowing that he had been sick for the past 1-2 years, Loi still tried to maintain his health. But he did not expect the illness to come so quickly. We organized a fundraising match for Loi on the afternoon of November 10. We hoped to contribute to Loi's recovery, but it was too late."

Only 3 domestic players have won the title of "Top scorer" of V-League

Winning the title of "Top scorer" is not easy when foreign players always have an overwhelming advantage. Like after Ho Van Loi won the title of "Top scorer" in 2001-2002, it took 15 years for striker Nguyen Anh Duc to surpass foreign players to win this title in the 2017 season.

NGUYEN KHOI

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/bieu-tuong-mot-thoi-cua-clb-cang-sai-gon-qua-doi-20251112083813925.htm