Difference in strength
Both Nam Dinh and Thanh Hoa clubs did not buy many players before the new season for different reasons. The team from Thanh Nam already had… more players so they only needed more foreign players. On the contrary, Thanh Hoa was not strong but the fact that they fulfilled their financial obligations such as salaries, bonuses, and signing-on fees with players was a great effort by Mr. Doan.
In the recent period, Thanh Hoa club only announced 3 new players including central defender Pham Manh Hung, striker Yago Ramos and defensive midfielder Kim Won-sik. Among them, the star from Korea brings a lot of hope. Despite the unnecessary noise, Kim Won-sik is considered by his teammates as a player of a different class.
However, he is likely to remain a backup for Gustavo and Antonio Luiz. Similarly, Yago Ramos will play as a backup for Rimario. Pham Manh Hung moved to Thanh Hoa Stadium quite late and was not registered to play in the National Super Cup. Coach Popov's squad is still A Mit, Ti Phong, Ngoc Tan, Thanh Long, Viet Tu...
On the other side of the front line, Rafaelson, Hendrio, Lucas, Van Vu, Van Cong or Hong Duy are enough to show the strength of the home team at Thien Truong Stadium. The 1-2 defeat in the semi-final of the 2023-2024 National Cup does not mean that Nam Dinh is weaker than Thanh Hoa. The opportunity for coach Vu Hong Viet and his team to "collect the debt" is still there.
Question mark for form?
Nam Dinh chose to play in a closed manner to hide their cards and continuously played many friendly matches to train their troops. On the contrary, the unstable period affected the preparation process of Thanh Hoa club. They played a friendly match with Song Lam Nghe An and then entered the Southeast Asian Club Cup.
Thanh Hoa's performance is a big question mark when looking at what they did against Shan United. The Thanh team encountered many difficulties, allowing the weak opponent from Myanmar to score first. Despite continuously pressing the field, Thanh Hoa did not show many good enough moves to make things difficult for the opponent.
Fortunately, Mr. Popov's timely adjustments and the individual brilliance of the foreign players helped Thanh Hoa escape. The very heavy training program to accumulate physical strength is also the reason why many players cannot be as free as desired.
But over the past 2 years, Thanh Hoa has been a very unpredictable team. They can play very well in a few specific matches, but can also "fall off the horse" at any time.
The inherent weakness in defense can cause Thanh Hoa to collapse. Don't forget that Thanh Hoa lost 2-5 to Nam Dinh in V.League 2023-2024 even though they were leading their opponents by 2 goals.
At the moment, it is probably difficult for Ngoc Tan and his teammates to find the 4th title in 2 seasons. Thanh Hoa is certainly capable of causing difficulties for Nam Dinh, but the cup will most likely stay in Thanh Nam.
The match between Nam Dinh and Thanh Hoa at the National Super Cup - Thaco Cup 2023-2024 takes place at 6:00 p.m. on August 31, at Thien Truong Stadium (Nam Dinh).
