More than a throne
The focus of round 5 of V.League 2024-2025 is on Pleiku Stadium, where Hoang Anh Gia Lai welcomes Thanh Hoa, the two teams leading the rankings.
This can be considered a surprise, because with modest investments, both Thanh Hoa and Hoang Anh Gia Lai were underestimated before the new season started. The mountain town team was even in the relegation candidate group due to the lack of quality transfer deals.
However, both teams have created interesting footage in the V.League's warm-up phase. Thanh Hoa, with the strongest attack in the league after 4 matches (scoring 9 goals), is leading the table with 9 points. Meanwhile, Hoang Anh Gia Lai has the most solid defense in the last 4 rounds. They have only conceded 1 goal and are temporarily ranked 2nd with 8 points.
The confrontation between Hoang Anh Gia Lai and Thanh Hoa can be likened to "a shield fighting a sword". The result of this match will directly affect the rankings of both sides after the 5th round.
In addition, this is also a match of honor. Since 2019, the team from the Mountain City has not lost once to Thanh Hoa. Despite no longer being a force in the V.League, Hoang Anh Gia Lai still made Thanh Hoa - the team that won the National Cup twice in a row - suffer 5 defeats and 4 draws in the V.League over the past half decade.
Problem for coach Popov
At the end of 2022, Thanh Hoa appointed head coach Velizar Popov. This is considered a successful deal beyond the expectations of the Thanh team. Even compared to the time of choosing famous coach Ljupko Petrovic, the decision to cooperate with Mr. Popov is much more impressive.
In fact, under the guidance of the Bulgarian strategist, Thanh Hoa has become a united, individual and strong team. Over the past 2 seasons, the Thanh team has won 3 titles: 2 National Cups and 1 National Super Cup. In addition, in the V.League, Thanh Hoa ranked 4th and 8th respectively in the last 2 seasons.
More importantly, the vast majority of clubs in the V.League have become Thanh Hoa's losers under Mr. Popov, on all fronts. Only two cases have not been able to be defeated, namely Ho Chi Minh City and Hoang Anh Gia Lai, which "annoyed" the European coach.
In the 3 meetings under Mr. Popov, Thanh Hoa only drew 2 and lost 1 to Hoang Anh Gia Lai. Even when not in the best form, the team from the mountain town still knew how to keep points against Thanh Hoa.
Obviously, Mr. Popov's away trip to Pleiku means more than just one match. Because it's not just about points or rankings, it's also about honor and the desire to erase the bad luck against the Central team's dirty opponent.
One problem that coach Popov needs to solve himself before thinking about Hoang Anh Gia Lai is that his tactics are only really effective against "big guys" who like to play offensively.
Meanwhile, every time they met clubs of equal or lower level, Thanh Hoa's strategy of massing in the middle of the field and counter-attacking quickly was not as effective as expected.
The times they lost points against Hong Linh Ha Tinh, Ho Chi Minh City, and Khanh Hoa are typical examples. With the "upper hand" mentality, the Thanh team will have to put as much pressure as possible on Hoang Anh Gia Lai. At that time, Mr. Popov needs more energy from the attacking players, if he wants to neutralize the solid defense of the Pleiku home team.
The problem in Pleiku will not be simple for coach Popov. 3 days before this match, the Thanh Hoa captain had to calculate a strategy to help Thanh Hoa and himself erase the curse...
