Latest HAGL match schedule: Mr. Vu Tien Thanh faces Coach Popov, extremely hot in Pleiku

The bottom team HAGL meets the second-placed team The Cong Viettel. In theory, the away team The Cong Viettel is much stronger, but who knows, this might be an easy match for HAGL.

Opportunity for HAGL to promote their strong counter-attacking style of play

HAGL, under the leadership of Technical Director Vu Tien Thanh and Coach Le Quang Trai, will host The Cong Viettel at Pleiku Stadium on Sunday (October 26). Under the guidance of the charismatic coach Popov, The Cong Viettel is ranked 2nd on the V-League 2025-2026 table with 15 points after 7 matches, while HAGL is at the bottom of the table with only 3 points after 6 matches. The risk of relegation is looming over the mountain town team. The battle of wits between the coaches will become attractive and heated.

Coach Popov has a strong personality.

Photo: Minh Tu

HAGL Technical Director Vu Tien Thanh (right) is also very sharp.

Photo: Minh Tu

HAGL (yellow shirt) is at the bottom of the V-League rankings.

Photo: Dong Nghi

The Cong Viettel is better than HAGL in terms of force, form, and confidence before the ball rolls. However, who knows, this will be a match that HAGL will have an easier time playing than other matches. The current position and position of both sides makes it easy to imagine that The Cong Viettel will play offensively in the upcoming match, with the goal of winning all 3 points against HAGL, in order to continue to cling to the top team Ninh Binh .

The problem is that the more The Cong Viettel plays offensively, the easier it will be for HAGL in this match. The mountain town team is currently good at defensive counter-attacking. HAGL is most afraid of teams that play slowly, playing with a low formation. On the contrary, against opponents that play offensively, ready to push up their formation to pressure them, HAGL seems to really like them.

Gain more than lose

If The Cong Viettel push up their attacking formation, HAGL will have the opportunity to use cross-field passes, allowing their forward players to race against the opposition’s high-post defense. HAGL’s forward line may not be good at controlling the ball against a well-organized defense, one that has enough players to cover all the gaps. But against a defense that is thinned out due to high-post, HAGL’s forward players will have more space to operate.

The mountain town football team likes to play defensive counter-attacks.

Photo: Minh Tu

Moreover, when playing against The Cong Viettel, HAGL players will not be under pressure. At the present time, perhaps very few people expect a victory for the mountain town team against the army of coach Popov (Bulgarian). Once mentally comfortable, HAGL players will be more relaxed in their finishing moves, from which the probability of them scoring will be higher than in past matches.

In any case, HAGL has often disappointed many different opponents since the beginning of V-League 2025-2026 until now, so for them at this time, meeting a strong team like The Cong Viettel is probably no different from meeting mid-level or weak teams. If HAGL can surprise The Cong Viettel, they will attract the attention of the entire V-League. On the contrary, if they "accidentally" lose another match against the team currently ranked second in the rankings, perhaps Technical Director Vu Tien Thanh and his students will have a reason to say that the opponent is too strong!

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/lich-thi-dau-hagl-moi-nhat-ong-vu-tien-thanh-cham-tran-hlv-popov-cuc-nong-o-pleiku-185251024162725791.htm