SLNA has just gone through an extremely difficult season in the V.League. They only won tickets to stay in the final rounds. The efforts of coach Phan Nhu Thuat and his team have been worthyly rewarded, so that they can continue to participate in the V.League next season, despite many difficulties still surrounding them.
In a challenging season, the Nghe An team still played well in the National Cup - the second largest playground for Vietnamese football. They defeated Da Nang and Dong Thap to advance to the semi-finals. Notably, in home matches since the beginning of the tournament, SLNA have played at home.
For Binh Duong, they went through an unsuccessful season. Despite large investments and high ambitions, the team from the land of Thu only finished in 7th place in the V.League with 32 points. Binh Duong has had many changes in the coaching position, but the situation has not improved much.
In that context, the National Cup became a Lifeline for Binh Duong to win a title. On the journey to the final, Binh Duong had difficult matches. They beat Binh Dinh in the qualifying round, Nam Dinh in the 1/8 round and Phu Dong Ninh Binh in the quarter-finals, all after a penalty shootout.
Binh Duong's hopes will be placed on coach Anh Duc, who won the National Cup with the team in 2018 as a player. This is also the most recent major title for the home team at Go Dau Stadium.
Anh Duc took the lead of Binh Duong from round 22, with a 0-0 draw against Quang Nam. In the last 5 matches of the coaching season, this strategist and his team won 2 matches, lost 2 matches and drew 1 match.
In addition to Anh Duc, striker Tien Linh also has high expectations. This striker has just ended the season as the joint top scorer in the V.League with 14 goals. Statistics show that Tien Linh has scored more than 45% of the goals for Binh Duong in the recent V.League.
The head-to-head record between Song Lam Nghe An and Binh Duong last season is balanced. The Nghe An team won 1-0 at Vinh Stadium but then lost 1-2 at Go Dau Stadium.
The SLNA vs Binh Duong match will take place at 6:00 p.m. on June 26.
Expected lineups of the two teams:
SLNA: Van Viet, Khac Luong, Van Cuong, Mai Hoang, Eduardo, Xuan Tien, Van Bach, Quang Tu, Kuku, Xuan Dai, Olaha.
Binh Duong: Minh Toan, Tung Quoc, Ngoc Hai, Janclesio, Minh Trong, Abdurakhmanov, Trung Hieu, Timite, Hai Huy, Minh Khoa, Tien Linh.
