CAHN waits to recreate miracles like HAGL in V-League

*CAHN - Thanh Hoa: 5:00 p.m. Sunday, August 26, on MetaSports.

20 years ago, HAGL with the huge investment of manager Doan Nguyen Duc, typically star Kiatisuk Senamuang, brought home the V-League championship in the first season of promotion. By this year, with a converging star cast like Nguyen Quang Hai, Doan Van Hau or Filip Nguyen, CAHN is holding a great advantage in the 2023 V-League championship race.

CAHN is leading the table with 37 points and a difference of +18, while the only chasing team is Hanoi FC with 35 points and a difference of +12. In the closing round taking place at the same time this afternoon, CAHN needs to win Thanh Hoa on Hang Day Stadium to be sure of winning. On the contrary, they have to wait for the result between the match between Hanoi and Viettel at My Dinh Stadium.

If CAHN loses, Hanoi FC only needs to win Viettel regardless of the score. But if CAHN draws 0-0, Hanoi FC must win with a difference of six goals or more to protect the throne. This is an unlikely scenario when their city rivals have never lost by more than three goals since returning to the V-League in 2019.

However, there are still variables that can happen, especially when seeing what CAHN shows this season. Overwhelming in terms of people, but they played quite erratic, to the point of having to use three coaches. The first is coach Paulo Foiani, only seven rounds in the first phase. The second is Flavio Cruz. In four months under the Brazilian ruler, the capital team won nine, drew two and lost two. From the infamous 2-1 victory on Nam Dinh's field, he gradually "disappeared". Before entering the final week of this season, CAHN appointed CEO Tran Tien Dai - who directly directed the field in the last three victories. But today, Mr. Dai could not come off the field because he received all three yellow cards.

Hanoi FC also showed that they will not give up. Coach Bozidar Bandovic affirmed that his students will try to the last second, must beat Viettel to create the necessary conditions. But when they do not have the right to self-determination, they have to rely more on the performance of Thanh Hoa - the team that has just won the National Cup but has run out of opportunities to compete in the V-League.

With that scenario, the V-League 2023 Organizing Committee has prepared two Cups at Hang Day and My Dinh yards. Besides, the match in Hang Day will have VAR, while the match in My Dinh will be controlled by foreign referees.

But no matter what, the V-League will see its fifth consecutive championship stay in the capital. Since Quang Nam in 2017, the race to the throne is no longer in the hands of the representatives of the Central or the South.