January 18, 2021
The 2021 regular season of the Vietnamese V.League 1 started this weekend and is one of the few leagues in the world at the moment where there are no restrictions of the number of spectators attending.
History
Organised league football first began in North Vietnam in 1955, and the V.League 1 was created in 1980 following the decision to allow semi-professionalism. The next development was in 2000 when professionalism was permitted, together with the permission to sign foreign players.
Clubs in Vietnam have regularly changed their names or identities over the years. However, Viettel ( formerly The Cong ) have won 19 titles since 1955 with Hai Phong ( formerly the side of Police ) next with 10 titles. Ha Noi have won the league 5 times.
For sponsorship reasons the competition is currently known as the LS V.League.1
The National Side
The Vietnam national side are currently ranked 93rd in the world, just below Zambia, Congo and the Lebanon, but above Madagascar, Jordan and Kyrgyzstan, making them 14th best in Asia. This is their highest ever ranking, and in 2006 they were as low as 174th. Their average position since the FIFA world rankings were created is 120.
Vietnam have never qualified for the World Cup or Olympic finals. In the qualifying process for the 2022 Qatar World Cup, Vietnam are currently top of their group, which also serves as the qualification for the 2023 Asian Cup to be held in China. With 5 out of 8 matches played, Vietnam have registered three wins and two draws ( Malaysia 1-0, UAE 1-0 & Thailand 0-0 at home, plus Indonesia 3-1 and Thailand 0-0 away ) with crucial matches in Malaysia and the UAE in March and June respectively still to be played. The group winners and the four best runners-up progress to the Third Qualifying round.
All of the squad used in the most recent qualifiers play their club football in the V.League and no Vietnamese footballer has ever played professional football in England. The record goal-scorer for the national side is Le Cong Vinh with 51 goals from 83 appearances, and he briefly played in Portugal for Leixoes and in Japan for Hoikkado Sapporo.
League Structure
The V.League 1 is currently ranked 8th in the East Region of the AFC which enables the winners to qualify for AFC Champions League Group stages.
The league consists of 14 sides who play each other once. The top 6 sides will then form a Championship play-off round of 5 further matches with points from the regular season carried forward. The Champions qualify for the 2022 AFC Championship league group stages whilst the runners-up and the winners of the Vietnamese Cup ( or the third placed side if the Cup winners finish in the top two ) qualify for the lesser AFC Cup.
The bottom 8 sides play in the relegation play-off, with the side finishing bottom of the league automatically relegated to the V.League 2, whilst the 13th placed team has one-off play-off match against the 2nd placed club in the V.League 2.
Typically the season is played between February and September. However, the 2021 season has started in mid-January, with the regular season scheduled to finish by mid-July.
Sides are allowed to sign 3 foreign players, plus one “naturalised” Vietnamese citizen. Clubs playing in the AFC Cup competitions are also permitted to sign an additional player from an AFC country. There are currently 23 Brazilians signed to V.League 1 sides, with Jamaica the next best represented country with four players. Other nationalities featured include Japan, South Korea, Nigeria, Serbia, Kosovo, Uzbekistan, Senegal, Burkina Faso, USA, Cameroon and Uganda.
The V.League 2 has been expanded from 12 to 14 sides in 2021.
Attendances
The 2020 season started behind closed doors in March but was suspended after two rounds of fixtures. When the league resumed in early June, spectators were permitted in the stadiums, initially on a 50% capacity basis although it was evident there was little social distancing as the main stands were packed and other areas empty.
In 2020 the average attendance in the league was 5,793, with Nam Dinh being the best supported side with an average of 12,333. Next came Hong Linh Ha Tinh on 7,375, followed by Hoang Anh Gia Lai with 6,812.
In 2019 the league average attendance was 7,180 where again Nam Dinh were the best supported side with an average of 15,000. Ha Noi were next with 8,077.
How To Watch
Decent highlights are available on either the VPF Media or Next Sports YouTube channels, Next Sports has live streams of some Cup and Division 2 matches.
Highlights and lots of statistics are also available on the official league website site ( www.vpf.vn ).
Last Season
Hanoi based Viettel were the 2020 Champions, finishing two points clear of Ha Noi, with Sai Gon a further 5 point behind. Ha Noi had the consolation of beating Viettel 2-1 in the Vietnamese Cup Final.
At the bottom Quang Nam were relegated on goal difference and have been replaced by V.League 2 champions Binh Dinh.
In the AFC Champions League, 2019 champions Ha Noi failed to obtain an AFC license ( despite playing in the 2019 competition and having a long run in the AFC Cup ) so Vietnam’s place went to runners up Ho Chi Minh City, who were eliminated 1-2 by Buriram United in Thailand. Dropping down to the AFC Cup, Ho Chi Minh City beat sides from Singapore and Laos and drew in Burma before the competition was cancelled due to the Covid pandemic.
Than Quang Ninh were Vietnam’s other representative in the AFC Cup, and they had drawn in the Philippines, won in Cambodia and lost in Singapore before the cancellation.
Round 1 Results
Friday 15th January
Nam Dinh 3-0 Ha Noi ( att : 16,000 )
Saturday 16th January
Becamex Binh Duong 1-0 Thanh Hoa ( att : 7,000 )
Song Lam Nghe An 1-1 Binh Dinh ( att : 3,500 )
Viettel 0-1 Hai Phong ( att : 4,500 )
Sunday 17th January
SHB Da Nang 1-0 Ho Chi Minh City ( att : 12,000 )
Hong Linh Ha Tinh 1-2 Than Quang Ninh ( att : 3,500 )
Sai Gon 1-0 Hoang Anh Gia Lai ( att : 14,500 )
Nam Dinh 3-0 Ha Noi ( att : 16,000 )
Nam Dinh is located 90km south-east of the capital so the visitors didn’t have far to travel for the match but won’t have had a pleasant journey home. Ha Noi have won the league 5 times in the last 10 years, and have not finished outside the top 3 in that period.
Since promotion to the V.League 1 in 2018, Nam Dinh have been the best supported club in the country each year, despite their highest placed finish being only 11th. Another large crowd gathered to witness this surprise win over one of the giants of the Vietnamese game, and for once their side gave them something to shout about. The Nam Dinh fans create a tremendous atmosphere with constant singing, flag waving, drumming and jumping about. A brass band played throughout virtually the whole game.
Nam Dinh’s foreign players had a huge impact in this game. Brazilian striker Rodrigo Dias, who was making his debut after signing from relegated Quang Nam and wore a distinctive yellow head-band, was prominent and had a hand in the opening goal in the 21st minute. His challenge at the near post to a low cross distracted Ha Noi keeper Nguyen van Cong, who went for the ball with his feet and could only knock the ball to the unmarked Gramoz Kurtaj at the back post, and the ex-Hamilton Academicals Kosovan had a simple side-footed volley into the unguarded net.
Nam Dinh stunned the shaken visitors three minutes later with a second goal, when Rodrigo Dias rose the highest to head home a corner.
Ha Noi should have pulled a goal back in first half added on time, but defender Van Dung put his header wide when unmarked 6 yards out. It looked like they had scored 10 minutes into the second half through Brazilian Bruno Cantahede but the linesman ruled that the ball had gone out of play before being turned back across goal. The TV replays showed this was incorrect !
The game became feisty with a number of bad challenges and the referee struggled to maintain control in the fractious environment. Ha Noi continued to press but Nam Dinh keeper Tu showed safe handling. On the counter attack, Rodrigo Dias sent a header just over the bar from a similar distance to where he had earlier scored.
In injury time Nam Dinh’s other Brazilian, Wesley dos Santos, wearing a red head-band got in on the act when his long range free-kick was fumbled by Van Cong, with Kurtaj again on hand to smash home for his second, and Nam Dinh’s third goal.
Becamex Binh Duong 1-0 Thanh Hoa ( att : 7,000 )
Becamex play in Thu Dau Mot, some 20km north of Ho Chi Minh City and are backed by one of the largest corporations in Vietnam. They have won the league 4 times, the last of which was in 2015, but have struggled since, and finished 6th in 2020. All three of their legionnaires started the match, namely Burkina Faso International defender Ali Rabo ( 10 caps ), US midfielder Victor Mansaray and veteran Senegalese forward Papa Omar Faye.
Thanh Hoa is 150km south of the capital Hanoi, and so had a journey of over 1,400km for this fixture. Nevertheless, there was a decent turnout of away support. They finished second in both 2017 and 2018 but came 11th last year.
The coach of Thanh Hoa is Ljupko Petrovic, who was in charge of the Red Star Belgrade side that won the 1990/91 European Cup, but he is now 73 years old. Their squad includes naturalised Nigerian striker Hoang Vu Samson, who has scored over 150 times in V.League 1 but was not amongst the players involved in this match. Jamaican forward Chevaughn Walsh started though, as did Cameroonian centre-back Louis Ewande and Brazilian midfielder Ze Paulo.
The match was decided in the 15th minute by midfielder To Van Vu’s swerving 25 yard effort, and Vu was the game’s most impressive performer with a lively performance. He almost added a second but his left-footed shot from a tight angle went just wide of the far post.
Becamex should have scored a decisive second goal in the second half but international forward Nyugen Tien Linh stuck the post when through with a 1:1 with the keeper, and Mansaray somehow shot over when unmarked 6 yards out.
Thanh Hoa’s best chances came in the first half but Dung shot wide from a good position early on and Tung headed over before half time. In the second half, Walsh saw his shot blocked, but Dung fired the rebound over the bar from the edge of the area.
Song Lam Nghe An 1-1 Binh Dinh ( att : 3,500 )
Song Lam Nghe An ( SLNA ) are based in the city of Vinh, located about 300km south of the capital Hanoi and they have won the league title on 3 occasions, the last of which was in 2011. They finished 10th in 2020 and this season have a striking partnership of Brazilian Felipe Martins and Nigerian Peter Onyekachi.
Binh Dinh are based in the coastal city of Qui Nhon, which is nearly 1,100 km from Hanoi, and are back in the top flight after winning V.League 2 in 2020. They have strengthened their side by signing Jamaican forward Rimario Gordon from Ha Noi, veteran South Korean centre-back Ahn Byung-Keon from Sai Gon and Brazilian forward Hendrio, who has played for Pacos de Ferreira in Portugal.
SLNA had the first chance of the match when Martins leaping header was athletically kept out by the Binh Dinh keeper and Onyekachi hammered the rebound over the bar from 8 yards. The TV replays were inconclusive as to whether or not the header had crossed the line before Minh Hoang clawed it away.
It got worse for SLNA when captain Khanh Hoang was shown the red card in the 15 minute for bringing down Dinh Kha Tran as the midfielder burst through the middle. The home fans humour would not have improved 15 minutes later when a suspiciously looking offside Hilario crossed from the left for Gordon to turn home to give the visitors the lead, and they would have cursed the referee even more when Martins appeared to have been fouled in the area just before half-time, but no penalty was awarded.
However, the 10 men did get a decision ten minutes into the second half when International midfielder Van Duc’s flick was handled, and Van Duc converted the penalty for the equalizer.
Binh Dinh pressed for the winner but full-back Tan Tai shot into the side netting, Tien Thanh headed wide and Thanh Pham’s deflected shot was acrobatically saved. However, SLNA held on for a point.
Viettel 0-1 Hai Phong ( att : 4,500 )
Hanoi based champions crashed to a surprise opening day defeat at home to long standing rivals Hai Phong.
Hai Phong came from the city of the same name, which is the third largest in Vietnam and is 120km east of Hanoi. They are one of the oldest clubs in the country, but their last title win came in 1988. They finished 12th last season. They are captained by Jamaican forward Andre Fagan who is partnered up from by compatriot Jermie Lynch. Australian midfielder Martin Lo has a Vietnamese passport so doesn’t count towards the foreign player total. Similarly, German centre-back Adriano Schmidt has a Vietnamese father. Brazilian forward Diego Silva started on the bench.
Viettel were formerly the team of the Army but are now sponsored by Vietnam’s telecommunications company ( although this is apparently run by the Ministry of Defence ! ). In the merry-go-round of foreign players, Viettel saw Cantanhede go to Ha Noi, but replaced him with Pedro Paulo from Sai Gon. Caique and Luizao remain from last season, and Uzbek midfielder Abdumominov has been signed from Andijon as their AFC player, but he wasn’t in the match-day squad.
Quite frankly Viettel were awful in the first half and could have gone into the break 3 or 4 goals behind. They were regularly caught short at the back against pacy counter attacking with Lynch having a particularly eye-catching half. He nearly opened the scoring in the second minute but the Viettel keeper made a good block and when the ball was recycled Lynch shot narrowly wide. To the delight of the hundreds of travelling fans, Hai Phong took the lead in the 15 minute when a 2 on 1 break saw Fagan decide to shoot, and the partial save left Nguyen Phu Nguyen with a simple finish. Lynch then hit the post and Viettel keeper Manh Tran made a fine double save to deny Fagan and Huu Khoi just before the interval.
Viettel did improve in the second half, with the best chance falling to Pedro Paulo but his attempt was blocked by the keeper and a defender before he could properly get his shot away. Despite laying siege to the Hai Phong goal in the closing stages, no clear cut chances were created.
SHB Da Nang 1-0 Ho Chi Minh City ( att : 12,000 )
Da Nang is 760km south of Hanoi and 610km north west of Ho Chi Minh. The SHB in the name stands for Saigon Hanoi Commercial Joint-Stock Bank, who are the owners of the club. They have won the league title three times, the last time in 2012. In 2020 they finished 9th and the only overseas players in their line-up for this match were the Brazilians attacking midfielder Rafaelson and defender Janclesio.
Ho Chi Minh City have won the league 4 times, the last being in 2002. Last year they finished 5th. They started with ex-Antwerp Senegalese defender Pape Diakite and Brazilian journeyman Dario upfront with another Brazilian forward, Joao Paolo, on the bench.
The first 10 minutes of the match had more goal mouth action than most games have over the full 90 minutes, and Da Nang could easily have been 4-1 ahead. Fist the impressive Ahn Tuan saw his shot tipped over the bar, Rafaelson shot wildly wide when put in space inside the left hand side of the area, a neat passing movement cut through the square defence only for the final pass to be cut out, and after a rabona pass by Ngoc Toan created space down the right wing, Duc Chinh’s shot was well save. Ho Chi Minh’s first attack saw Xuan Nam’s shot blocked by Janclesio.
The only goal finally came in the 15th minute when Van Long’s pass found Duc Chinh, and with Ahn Tuan’s overlapping run distracting the defender, Duc Chinh curled the ball over the keeper into the far corner for a delightful finish.
The goal seemed to take the momentum out of the game, with little happening in the rest of the half apart from Xuan Nam having a close range effort saved, and the ball eventually being cleared after a massive scramble.
Da Nang should have put the game to bed in the first 5 minutes of the second half, but after Duc Chinh’s header was disallowed for a clear offside, they squandered two incredible chances. Firstly, Rafaelson was left with only the keeper to beat but unselfishly passed to his right give Duc Chinh an open goal. Unfortunately for Da Nang, the ball hit the post ! Two minutes later Rafaelson was again bearing down on goal with only the retreating Diakite to beat, and unselfishly passed to his left, but Phi Hoang’s shot crashed back off the post. Next time Rafaelson will be forgiven for going it alone !
Ho Chi Minh had more of the play as the game went on, but were limited to harmless long range efforts, the best of which was Joao Paolo’s 35 yard free-kick, which was comfortably tipped over.
Hong Linh Ha Tinh 1-2 Than Quang Ninh ( att : 3,500 )
Hong Linh Ha Tinh ( HLHT ) are based in the city of Ha Tinh, 360km south of Hanoi. They finished 8th in 2020 after being promoted the year before. Nigerian centre-back Kester Oahimijie and veteran Brazilian forward Junior Claudecir started for them and Nigerian forward Ismahil Akinade was amongst the substitutes.
Than Quang Ninh ( TQH ) play in the city of Cam Ph, which is 200km east of Hanoi. In 2020 they finished in 4th place, and they have been in the top 6 every season since being promoted to V.League 1 in 2014. There were three Brazilians in their line-up, forward Patrick Leonardo, centre back Gustavo and forward Eydison, who has played for at least 27 different clubs and is still only 31 years old !
HLHT dominated the first half, and took the lead in the 26 minute when Trung Hoc’s astute pass played in Phi Son to fire into the roof of the net from just inside the angle of the penalty area. HLHT were then awarded a penalty when Claudecir was kicked, and the Brazilian got up to take the penalty himself, only to put it wide. On the stroke of half-time Van Vi was bundled over and HLHT were given another penalty. Claudecir against stepped forward to take, but his weak penalty was too close to the keeper who saved with his legs.
It looked as if that would be the end of the excitement but 8 minutes from the end, the referee played an excellent advantage which enabled a through ball to be played to Eydison, who stabbed home for the equalizer. With the clock in the red zone, TQH counter attacked with substitute Van Quy playing a square ball leaving the unmarked Eydison a simple finish for his second goal and the match winner. The away fans celebrated by letting off fireworks………
Sai Gon 1-0 Hoang Anh Gia Lai ( att : 14,500 )
Sai Gon play in Ho Chi Minh City, formerly the capital of South Vietnam, and jointly run a football academy with FC Tokyo. They came 3rd last season.
Sai Gon started with Brazilian Thiago at centre-back, South Korean Woo Sangho in midfield and 39 year old former Japanese international up front. Naturalised Argentinian forward Gaston Merlo has close to 150 league goals in Vietnam, and led the Sai Gon attack.
Hoang Ang Gia Lai ( HAGL ) play in Pleiku in the Gai Lai province in central Vietnam, 1,100km south of Hanoi. They won the league in 2003 and 2004, and ended up in 7th place last season. They have a partnership with Dutch side Feyenoord. South Korean Kim Dong-Su started at left back, whilst Brazilian forward Washington Brandao started up front. Serbian centre-back Damir Memovic was gathering splinters on the bench.
Sai Gon started brightly but the first chance went to HAGL in the 10th minute. Three first time passes gave Cong Phuong the chance to lob the keeper, but Hoai An cleared off the line with a scissor kick.
The only goal came in the 40th minute. HAGL lost possession just inside their own half, and Merlo strode forward and placed his shot into the corner from just outside the penalty area.
There were very few chances in the match, but with 7 minutes to go Van Thanh’s first time left footed shot hit the bar for HAGL, and three minutes later the Sai Gon keeper was forced into a diving save to concede a corner. Despite the late pressure, Sai Gon held on comfortably though for the three points.
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