Former football star Ho Van Loi passed away

Born in 1970 in Hue , famous in Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Van Loi was once considered a "freak" of Vietnamese football. He was less than 1m60 tall, but was once the terror of defenders in the domestic league.

Cựu danh thủ Hồ Văn Lợi qua đời - 1 — Ho Van Loi was the top scorer of V-League 2001-2002 (Photo: Document).

The name of the late football player Ho Van Loi is associated with the once famous football team Saigon Port (later renamed Southern Steel - Saigon Port). Ho Van Loi won the national football championship 3 times in 1994, 1997 and 2002. In the 2001-2002 season alone, Ho Van Loi won the title of Top Scorer with 9 goals.

He became the second domestic striker to win this title in the history of the V-League (since the national football championship changed its name to V-League, from the 2000-2001 season), after the first person to do this was striker Dang Dao of Khanh Hoa Club.

This is an achievement that only 15 years later, the third domestic striker was able to replicate, that is Nguyen Anh Duc of Becamex Binh Duong Club (old), achieved in V-League 2017.

Cựu danh thủ Hồ Văn Lợi qua đời - 2 — Ho Van Loi (sitting) on the hospital bed (Photo: VFF).

Ho Van Loi is considered one of the most outstanding students of the late famous coach Pham Huynh Tam Lang. Ho Van Loi has a very unique playing style, he is extremely eccentric, making it almost impossible for defenders and goalkeepers to predict his moves.

In recent years, Ho Van Loi has been battling a serious illness. His colleagues and former teammates have organized fundraising matches to help him. Early this morning, his family announced that Ho Van Loi could not survive.

Ho Van Loi passed away at the age of 55, leaving behind a sense of regret for all Vietnamese football lovers. One of the players with the most “unconventional” playing style in the history of domestic football has left his fans forever.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-thao/cuu-danh-thu-ho-van-loi-qua-doi-20251112085000881.htm