Coach Lê Quang Trãi expressed regret over dropping points against SLNA.

04/10/2025 06:06:00 VictoryVox

On October 3rd afternoon, Hoàng Anh Gia Lai (HAGL) hosted Sông Lam Nghệ An (SLNA) in the 6th round of the LPBank V-League 2025/2026. Given that both teams are struggling near the bottom of the table, earning 3 points against their rival was extremely important.

Taking advantage of their home ground, HAGL went ahead with a close-range finish by Nguyễn Minh Tâm in the 7th minute. At the 69th minute, SLNA equalized 1-1 through a confident strike by Michael Olaha inside the penalty box. At 90+9 minutes, HAGL was awarded a penalty after Văn Khánh fouled Gia Bảo in the box. Unfortunately, Jairo’s shot soared over the crossbar, forcing HAGL to share points at home with SLNA.

After the match, Coach Lê Quang Trãi expressed his disappointment: "My feeling about this game can be summed up in one word: regret. We had a great opportunity to secure all 3 points but ended up losing them."

In reality, although somewhat outplayed by their opponents, especially in the second half, HAGL players still showed impressive fighting spirit. Early in the second half, as SLNA pushed forward to find an equalizer, HAGL deliberately played deep with a plan to defend tightly, keep a clean sheet, and look for counterattack chances.

HAGL players demonstrated clear determination in their defensive blocks. Jairo confirmed his role as captain and defensive leader. He won nearly every aerial duel. Even younger teammates like Quang Kiệt and Văn Triệu were willing to throw themselves into blocks. Unfortunately, despite a strong overall performance, Jairo left a "scar" with his missed penalty at the end.

"At HAGL, Jairo is always the top choice for penalties. He has successfully converted many before, but in today’s match, due to rain, slippery pitch, wet ball, and soft ground, he failed to score. It’s regrettable. After the game, I shook his hand and encouraged him because missing a penalty is normal," said Coach Lê Quang Trãi.

The slippery and waterlogged pitch significantly affected the playing style of both teams, not just Jairo’s missed penalty. Before the match started, heavy rain fell on Pleiku Stadium, lasting over 10 minutes after referee Mai Xuân Hùng’s whistle. After the rain, many waterlogged spots appeared on the pitch, disrupting passing and individual control for players on both sides. Many passes were stopped by puddles, breaking the attacking rhythm.

Notably, this situation rarely happened on Pleiku’s field before when it used ginger grass. However, since the 2025–2026 season, Pleiku Stadium has adopted a new needle grass surface, which frequently causes water pooling.

Probably due to the slippery, wet conditions and waterlogged pitch, after Nguyễn Minh Tâm’s goal, both teams had few notable chances near the opponent’s goal. The ball mainly stayed in midfield, occasionally played wide for crosses, but the quality of these crosses was unimpressive, preventing attackers from having clear shooting opportunities.

At the press conference, Coach Nguyễn Huy Hoàng also stated that the waterlogged pitch caused difficulties for both teams: "Yesterday, we trained on Pleiku’s pitch in good weather and felt confident. But today, the rain and waterlogged pitch greatly impacted both teams’ ability to play, not just SLNA. This prevented us from organizing effective play. In such wet conditions, the team that capitalizes on finishing chances wins. HAGL missed their late penalty, and luck favored us."

Additionally, Coach Nguyễn Huy Hoàng believes SLNA needs to improve their defense, especially the organization and blocking in their own half, which remains disorganized: "The club’s management has assigned us as the coaching staff, possibly temporarily while looking for a new head coach. We don’t care about that; the most important thing is to do our job well."

Despite dropping points at home, HAGL remains stuck in 13th place on the standings with only 3 points from 5 matches. Although they have played one less game than other teams, to improve their position, Coach Lê Quang Trãi’s Mountain Town team needs significant progress to regain the trust of their fans.

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