Day 7 of Nghe An football

The next two matches of round 21 will take place on Saturday (May 3rd).

Hong Linh Ha Tinh , the incredibly interesting "phenomenon" of this V.League season with their current 4th place position, will host Becamex Binh Duong at the Ha Tinh stadium. After losing to Hai Phong at the start of the second half of the season (following a 13-match unbeaten streak in the first half), under the guidance of coach Nguyen Thanh Cong, Ha Tinh continued their unbeaten run for another 6 matches, not only maintaining their position in the upper half of the table but also surprisingly climbing to the top 4.

Notably, all three of their second-half wins (including the two most recent matches against Hoang Anh Gia Lai and Ho Chi Minh City) were away games and all by a minimal margin. Their tight, disciplined style of play, maximizing the abilities of each player to create effectiveness, makes Ha Tinh the most difficult team to beat this season.

On the other side, Binh Duong is still struggling after suffering a heavy defeat in their third of the last four matches (1-3 against Nam Dinh), so the team from Binh Duong – despite being a big name in the V.League – is naturally no longer highly rated before this match. In fact, with their very stable form, Ha Tinh is considered the slightly better team.

At Lach Tray Stadium, Hai Phong's match against Song Lam Nghe An (SLNA) is also a highly anticipated game, especially considering the "noisy" history of clashes between these two former powerhouses of Vietnamese football. However, no club can live forever on the glory of the past and must take a realistic view of the present.

The truth is that both teams have faced considerable difficulties this season, especially SLNA, which is still in the "danger zone," only 3 points above the second-to-last position (requiring a play-off). Having lost 0-1 to SLNA in the first leg, there's no doubt this will be an opportunity for coach Chu Đình Nghiêm's team to settle the score and continue hoping for the highest possible position at the end of the season. On the other hand, with the motivation of fighting to avoid relegation, SLNA will also be determined to get points in this match, which is considered a close contest.