The referee's whistle sounded to signal the end of the match, the players of Ho Chi Minh City Club collapsed on the field, bursting into tears after losing 3-4 to Hong Linh Ha Tinh Club.

On the afternoon of May 27, Ho Chi Minh City Club (in blue) traveled to the home field of Hong Linh Ha Tinh (HLHT) within the framework of round 9 of V.League 1 - 2023. The goal of coach Vu Tien Thanh's team is to win 3 points to "escape" the bottom position.

In this match, Ho Chi Minh City Club played quite well. They scored the opening goal in the 12th minute. After the home team equalized, this team continued to lead the opponent with a score of 3-1.

This score was maintained until the 64th minute of the match. It seemed that Ho Chi Minh City Club had come away with a victory, but the defense lost focus and they paid the price with consecutive goals. In the 64th minute, Paulo Pinto (number 88) scored accurately to bring the score to 2-3 for the home team. With high spirits, the players of the Hong Mountain team pressured their opponents to the point of suffocation.

In the 74th minute, Pinto made an impressive breakthrough, forcing the opposing team's defender to commit a foul in the penalty area, and HLHT was awarded a penalty. Captain Dinh Thanh Trung took the free kick, but could not beat the Ho Chi Minh City FC goalkeeper. Fortunately, he rushed in in time to score the rebound, equalizing the score 3-3 for the home team.

The equalizer made the HLHT spirit even higher, while the away team was under great pressure. The drama of the match took place in the 90+7 minute of extra time when substitute striker Vu Quang Nam headed the ball for midfielder Pham Van Long to score, setting the score at 4-3 for the home team.

To let the opponent come back, the players of Ho Chi Minh City Club collapsed on the field.

Many players could not contain their disappointment and burst into tears.

After 9 rounds, Ho Chi Minh City Club still has not had its first victory, the risk of relegation is getting bigger.

Ho Chi Minh City Club coaching staff encouraged the players after the loss to HLHT.

In the press conference room, coach Vu Tien Thanh could not hide his regret. He said: “ At the end of the match, the defense played without concentration, which made us pay a heavy price. We should have won 1 point, this defeat will make our team face difficulties in the upcoming journey.”

With the victory in round 9, HLHT rose to 6th place, the chance to enter the 8 strongest teams after the end of the first leg is very high.

Ngoc Thang