Highlights of the match between Hanoi Police Club and Binh Duong Club, The Cong-Viettel is a guest at Thien Truong Stadium

In order to prepare for the Vietnamese team to participate in the 2023 Asian Cup taking place in Qatar from January 12 to February 10, 2024, the matches of round 8 of the 2023/24 V-League were moved up to play early on December 26-27.

Binh Duong Club players practice at Hang Day Stadium, Hanoi. (Source: FB)

In the final match of 2023, the team that is going through a series of 4 matches without knowing victory, the defending champion Hanoi Police, will host Becamex Binh Duong - a club that is thriving in second place with a series of 4 unbeaten matches.

Being 7 points behind Binh Duong Club on the rankings, 3 points will be a mandatory goal for coach Gong Oh Kuyn and his team if they do not want to be left behind by their opponents in the championship race.

However, the capital team will be a huge challenge for the defending champion because in the last two rounds, coach Le Huynh Duc's team has won against two teams in the top 3, Nam Dinh and Thanh Hoa.

In addition, Hanoi Police Club will not have the service of central defender Huynh Tan Sinh in the important match with Binh Duong.

The list of suspended players in round 8 also includes striker Timite Cheick Aymar (Ho Chi Minh City Club), defender Do Thanh Thinh (MerryLand Quy Nhon Binh Dinh), defender Tran Manh Cuong (The Cong-Viettel) and defender duo Nguyen Thanh Long and Doan Ngoc Tan (Dong A Thanh Hoa).

Not only missing the defender duo, Dong A Thanh Hoa also suffered a loss on the coaching bench in the away match at Quang Nam in this round, when coach Popov Velizar was banned from coaching due to receiving 3 yellow cards since the beginning of the season.

In this round, the two remaining teams of the capital, The Cong-Viettel and Hanoi FC, both have away matches: Hoang Duc and his teammates have a trip to Thien Truong Stadium of the top team, Thep Xanh Nam Dinh, Hanoi FC only has to meet the bottom team, LPBank Hoang Anh Gia Lai, in a match at Pleiku Stadium.

The two teams at the bottom of the table, Khanh Hoa and Song Lam Nghe An, will play at the 19/8 Nha Trang Stadium; while Ho Chi Minh City Club is expected to extend its unbeaten streak at Thong Nhat Stadium against the second-to-last team, Hong Linh Ha Tinh.

In the latest match of round 8, the home team Hai Phong (11 points, ranked 6th) will welcome MerryLand Quy Nhon Binh Dinh Club (13 points, ranked 3rd) at Lach Tray Stadium.

After a surprising defeat against newcomer Quang Nam in the previous round, coach Chu Dinh Nghiem's team will aim to win all 3 points at home to surpass their opponent Binh Dinh on the V-League 2023/24 rankings.