By the end of round 23, Tien Linh still held the top spot in the scoring list with 11 goals, equal to foreign player ribamar (Thanh Hoa). However, after a series of round 24 matches on the evening of May 23, Hai Phong Brazilian striker Lucao made a spectacular breakthrough. Lucao's double against The Cong Viettel helped him increase his total goals to 12, officially rising to No. 1 on the rankings.
Meanwhile, Pedro Henrique (The Cong Viettel) also scored another goal in this match, thereby leveling the score with 11 goals for Tien Linh. Notably, although Binh Duong won 2-0 against Ho Chi Minh City, Tien Linh continued to " miss the go". This was the 5th consecutive match that Tien Linh did not score.
Losing the leading position in the top scorer race is not good news for Tien Linh as he prepares to join the Vietnam national team. Tien Linh is the great hope of fans in the context that domestic strikers rarely compete fairly with foreign players in the V.League playground.
However, there are still opportunities for the 2024 Vietnam Golden Ball. Binh Duong still has 3 matches left to play, including a make-up match with Cong An Ha Noi. If he finds his scoring form again soon, Tien Linh can completely reverse the situation and regain the leading position.
According to the plan, after completing the club-level matches, Tien Linh will join the Vietnam national team on May 29, preparing for the match against Malaysia in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers taking place on June 10.
