This year's V-League title favourite, FLC Thanh Hoa lost 2-5 at the hands of Dong Nai on August 16, who are standing on the verge of relegation, making their Sunday meeting the biggest surprise of round 21.
This year’s V-League title favourite, FLC Thanh Hoa lost 2-5 at the hands of Dong Nai on August 16, who are standing on the verge of relegation, making their Sunday meeting the biggest surprise of round 21.
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| Thanh Hoa (in yellow) miss the opportunity to claim top spot from Becamex Binh Duong. |
A large crowd of about 4,000 Thanh Hoa supporters arrived at Dong Nai Stadium only to see their hopes crushed as their team promptly fell behind just 13 minutes after the first whistle, with veteran defender Duc Tuan accidentally driving the ball into the home team’s goal.
Thanh Hoa were forced to play with ten players on field from the 23rd minute after Sy Cuong was sent off following his brutal intervention on Dong Nai’s Nsi in the box, which also earned the host side a penalty shot.
Hai Anh did not miss the golden opportunity to make it 2-0 for Dong Nai.
Omar Faye reduced the gap to 1-2 for Thanh Hoa with an eye-catching strike in a fast counterattack four minutes later; however, their hopes for a comeback faced a tough blow as Nsi helped the home side re-establish the two-goal advantage in the 36th minute.
The guests’ ineffective defensive line favoured Dong Nai to score two more goals thanks to Henry and The Hung in the 48th and 83rd minute respectively, while Omar Faye managed to pull another goal back for Thanh Hoa with a 55th-minute successful penalty converter.
The heavy loss deprived Thanh Hoa of their golden chance to snatch top spot from Becamex Binh Duong, who were held to a 2-2 draw by Hanoi T&T on the same day. Meanwhile, due to their convincing victory, Dong Nai temporarily escaped the relegation zone, three points clear of bottom place.
In other matches, Dong Thap edged out Hoang Anh Gia Lai 1-0; SHB Da Nang crushed Dong Tam Long An 7-3; Quang Ninh Coal beat Hai Phong 2-1; XSKT Can Tho lost 0-3 to Sanna Khanh Hoa; and Song Lam Nghe An overcame QNK Quang Nam 3-2.
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(Source:Nhan Dan)
