CAHN paid the price with a strange lineup against Hai Phong

*Goals: Lucao 27' (pen), Mpande 58', Huu Son 62' – Quang Hai 60'.

At Lach Tray Stadium on the evening of December 4, coach Gong Oh-kyun continued to place striker Nguyen Xuan Nam in central midfield while Hoang Van Toan, Pham Van Luan and Le Pham Thanh Long sat on the bench. Besides, the Korean coach believes in using young players like Ha Van Phuong, La Nguyen Bao Trung, Pham Gia Hung, while experienced defenders like Ho Tan Tai and Bui Tien Dung are not registered.

These adjustments caused CAHN to perform unsatisfactorily. In the 27th minute, Xuan Nam defended amateurishly, letting the ball touch his hand after Luong Hoang Nam's shot outside the penalty area, leading to a penalty. On the 11 meter mark, Lucao do Break shot low into the left corner, not giving goalkeeper Filip Nguyen a chance to block.

Despite the return of Nguyen Quang Hai, CAHN's attack played sporadically, contrary to the hosts' chemistry. In the second half, coach Gong sent central midfielder Hoang Van Toan and foreign striker Janio Fialho onto the field but could not change the situation.

In the 58th minute, Joseph Mpande pressed well, turned into the penalty area and shot at a tight angle on the left wing but could not beat Filip Nguyen. Not long after that, Hai Phong had a typical corner kick combination under coach Chu Dinh Nghiem. The ball was hung on the near post for Trieu Viet Hung to touch and head back to the far post. The entire CAHN defense was surprised and had no time to react when Mpande ran in and finished doubling the gap.

CAHN paid the price with a strange lineup against Hai Phong

Immediately after that, the scoreboard continuously changed. In the 60th minute, La Nguyen Bao Trung crossed from the right wing for Quang Hai to hit the ground unmarked, shortening the score to 1-2 for CAHN.

But just two minutes later, Hai Phong increased the gap again. The home team coordinated beautifully in the middle when the ball passed through Huu Son's feet, Hoang Nam let Lucao pull the ball into the penalty area. The Brazilian striker shot the ball past Filip Nguyen's reach, hitting the bottom edge of the crossbar and hitting the ground, before Huu Son quickly ran in and headed into the empty net.

In the remaining time, CAHN tried to push forward but surrendered to Hai Phong's defense. The home team played leisurely, controlled the ball and waited for a counterattack, but no more goals were scored.

CAHN experienced its first loss at the 2023-2024 Night Wolf National Championship, and also lost third place to Hai Phong. The two teams have the same seven points, goal difference +3, but the home team scored more goals with nine goals compared to the opponent's seven.

Starting lineup

Hai Phong: Dinh Trieu, Dang Van Toi, A San, Pham Hoai Duong, Trieu Viet Hung, Luong Hoang Nam, Huu Son, Tuan Anh, Bicou Bissainthe, Joseph Mpande, Lucao do Break

CAHN: Filip Nguyen, Huynh Tan Sinh, Bui Hoang Viet Anh, Ha Van Phuong, La Nguyen Bao Trung, Quang Hai, Xuan Nam, Ho Ngoc Thang, Pham Gia Hung, Geovane Magno, Jeferson Elias.

Hieu Luong