The draw with Hai Phong FC at Lach Tray Stadium in round 12 of V-League 2023 - 2024 on March 2 was the first point that coach Nguyen Duc Thang has earned since returning to become head coach of the team that made his name. However, Mr. Thang remained calm and shared: “When I decided to ban The Cong Viettel, I was already under great pressure, so three matches without a win is not going to add more pressure. My job or Mr. Nghiem's ​​is to live with pressure, so right now it's not enough for me to think more.”

According to Mr. Thang, the problem of The Cong Viettel is that the performance of the attackers and defenders is declining after a series of unsatisfactory matches. "In fact, we always create many opportunities, each match at least three opportunities to score a goal but all are missed. This is a traditional team, newly given a traditional name, perhaps the players are psychologically affected by this, so it is natural that there are few goals," Mr. Thang shared after the draw with Hai Phong.

Currently, The Cong Viettel is at the bottom of the V-League 2023 - 2024 rankings with only 10 points, the chance to compete for the championship is almost gone. However, coach Nguyen Duc Thang still does not lower the team's goals. "With The Cong, we always want to stand high. The whole team will have to overcome difficulties step by step, not lower the goal. From now on, every match is a final, very difficult, but who knows, even with difficulties, we will win," Mr. Thang confidently said.

Coach Chu Dinh Nghiem of Hai Phong team also expressed satisfaction with the point earned against The Cong Viettel. According to Mr. Nghiem, the port city team is facing a serious personnel crisis that has caused disruption to the lines. "Especially the defense is constantly losing people, there is no self-stabilizing unit, so even though we scored 19 goals, which is among the top in the V-League, we still lost many points. I am trying to find more central defenders to supplement," Mr. Nghiem shared.

The draw with The Cong Viettel was the 6th match that Hai Phong team did not win. After 12 rounds, the port city team has 13 points and is temporarily ranked 8th in V-League 2023 - 2024.