Eastern Club is not ranked in the top candidate group in the Hong Kong Championship (China). After 3 rounds of this season, they have only won 4 points with 1 win, 1 draw and 1 loss.
Meanwhile, in the opening match of the AFC Champions League Two, Eastern had a quite impressive performance when facing Gamba Osaka - a representative from J.League.
Although being rated lower, the Hong Kong (China) team unexpectedly scored a goal to level the score at 1-1, creating a balanced game that lasted until the 75th minute.
However, the red card of defender Calum Hall left Eastern short of players and unable to hold on to the pressure, thereby accepting a 1-3 loss in Japan.
Although not possessing a superior squad, Eastern is still considered an organized, defensive and disciplined team with sharp counter-attacks with prominent names such as Martins and Yu Okubo. However, they also clearly show their weaknesses in the ability to keep a team distance when under pressure and easily fall into a state of being uncomfortable. This is a factor that Nam Dinh can take advantage of.
On the other hand, the team from Thanh Nam is going through a period of turmoil. Facing pressure from fans' expectations as well as a tight schedule, coach Vu Hong Viet's team is showing an unstable face.
Amid impressive victories in the AFC Champions League Two and the Southeast Asian Cup C1, they lost consecutively to Ninh Binh and Cong An Ha Noi in the V.League. The home defeat against Hanoi Police caused Nam Dinh to drop to 7th place, 6 points behind Ninh Binh despite playing 1 more match.
Coach Vu Hong Viet admitted that the team is having difficulty rotating the squad and recovering physical strength. However, he still believes that the door to continue is not closed for Nam Dinh.
The match between Nam Dinh and Eastern in the AFC Champions League Two will take place at 5:00 p.m. today (October 2) and will be broadcast live on FPT Play.
Live link:
https://fptplay.vn/su-kien/eastern-fc-nam-dinh-fc-68d6685b86e7947e48c42229?event=eventtv&type=highlight