'Happy about the win, but feel sorry for the Van Lang University team'

Coach Ta Hong Ha (right) admits he was lucky to secure his first victory.

Ho Chi Minh City University of Industry's unexpected victory.

Group C of the Group E qualifying round in Ho Chi Minh City for the 3rd Vietnam Youth and Student Football Tournament - 2025 THACO Cup faced the prospect of all draws after the first round. Following RMIT University's 2-2 draw with Gia Dinh University, the subsequent match between Van Lang University and Ho Chi Minh City University of Industry also ended in a goalless draw for 80 minutes.

But then, unexpectedly, in a rare attacking move by Ho Chi Minh City University of Industry in the 80+1 minute, after an opponent's shot, defender Ly Trong Tien, in an attempt to block it, accidentally scored an own goal, much to everyone's astonishment.

The match between Van Lang University (blue) and Ho Chi Minh City University of Industry (red) was fiercely contested.

Coach Ta Hong Ha shared: "Today was the first match, the team from Ho Chi Minh City University of Industry faced Van Lang University, a team with the potential to compete for the top spot, so the game was quite tight."

I'm happy about the win, but I also feel a bit lucky. It's a bit of a shame for Van Lang University; they played well but conceded a goal in injury time."

With this result, the University of Industry temporarily moved to the top of Group C in the Ho Chi Minh City regional qualifiers of the THACO Cup 2025 student competition with 3 points, ahead of RMIT University and Gia Dinh University, each with 1 point.

Open the door to the dream of going to the playoffs.

The joy of victory for the players of Ho Chi Minh City University of Industry.

This is a promising start for the Ho Chi Minh City University of Industry's team and their coach to reach the dream play-off match if they achieve good results in the remaining two games, following their disciplined performance in the opening match.

I remember that in the 2024 THACO Cup, the Industrial University team played well. However, they faced a very strong team, Van Hien University, in their first match and lost immediately, failing to advance beyond the group stage.

But the thrilling 1-0 victory against Van Lang University opened up an opportunity. However, coach Ta Hong Ha remained cautious: "Everyone wants to get three points when playing. But the Van Lang University team is really strong, so we have to choose a suitable playing style."

This result is a great morale booster and gives the Ho Chi Minh City University of Industry team a significant advantage. But student football is unpredictable, so we'll have to stay focused."

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/truong-dh-cong-nghiep-tphcm-vui-vi-thang-nhung-tiec-cho-doi-dh-van-lang-185241231120423201.htm