Coach Kim Sang-sik receives extremely good news from Vietnam's number one 'conductor'

Ninh Bình dramatically defeated Becamex TP.HCM in round 18 of V.League 2025/26, while also welcoming the good news that captain Nguyễn Hoàng Đức has recovered from injury and is ready to return.

Speaking after the match, Coach Vũ Tiến Thành confirmed the condition of the star born in 1998: “Currently, Hoàng Đức has returned to normal. If we risk it, I could let him start, but we only used him for about the last 10-15 minutes of the match to ensure safety..”

Previously, Hoàng Đức suffered a knee injury after Vietnam's win against Malaysia in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers. Following the 3-1 victory on March 31st, this midfielder showed signs of pain and had to be hospitalized for examination. The results indicated he was overloaded and needed to rest from playing for 2-3 weeks to avoid recurrence. This caused Hoàng Đức to miss two crucial matches against HAGL and Becamex TP.HCM, significantly affecting Ninh Bình's strength.

The captain's return thus carries the meaning of a "mental doping dose" for the whole team. In the match at Bình Dương stadium, Ninh Bình experienced 90 tense minutes. Geovane Magno opened the score from a penalty, but Hồ Tấn Tài quickly brought the match back to equilibrium. When everyone thought of a draw, a turning point appeared in stoppage time when Geovane assisted for Lê Văn Thuận to score the goal sealing the 2-1 victory..

Coach Vũ Tiến Thành evaluated: “We controlled the ball better, created more opportunities, and the victory was deserved. Becamex TP.HCM is a very strong team so the match was difficult as expected..”

Besides Hoàng Đức, Văn Thuận is also a name mentioned frequently. This young talent continues to make an impression with his second consecutive decisive goal. Coach Vũ Tiến Thành gave special praise: “This is very encouraging. Thuận is one of the notable talents. I really like him, but currently it's more suitable for him to enter from the second half to maximize effectiveness. He will continue to be used as a strategic card in the remainder of the season, before becoming a pillar in Ninh Bình's near future..”

With this important victory, Ninh Bình has 34 points, continuing to rank 3rd on the standings, trailing Thể Công Viettel by 4 points and creating a similar gap with Hanoi FC. More importantly, Hoàng Đức's timely return could become a turning point helping this team break through in the remaining journey of the season.