* PRE-MATCH COMMENTARY
Last season, the Tra Vinh University team won convincingly 7-1 against the FPT Can Tho University team, thereby entering the play-off match and winning the only ticket to the final round of the tournament.
This year, in the Southwest region qualifying round, the draw continued to put two teams in group B. Before the second match, Tra Vinh University showed its strength. In the opening match, the representative from Tra Vinh had a strong 4-0 victory over Vinh Long University of Technical Education, thereby ranking first in group B with 3 points (4/0 difference).
Tra Vinh University continues to be considered the best candidate for a ticket to the finals even though before the tournament, the team parted ways with some key players. At this time, in the hands of coach Tram Quoc Nam, there are still important cards such as Huynh Dang Khoa, Vo Pham Nhat Duy, Cao Lu Minh Thuan, and a very formidable squad depth. In the first match, it was Cao Lu Minh Thuan who scored a hat trick against Vinh Long University of Technical Education, thereby bringing victory as well as a great advantage to the representative of Tra Vinh.
For the FPT Can Tho University team, after participating in the tournament for the third time, the team has shown significant progress. In the opening match of Group B, FPT Can Tho University and Tay Do University had a very dramatic score chase. It was very difficult for Tay Do University to win 3-2. It was quite unfortunate for FPT Can Tho University when at the end of the match, the team’s goalkeeper was disqualified after a dangerous foul near the penalty area with the opposing team’s striker. Competing with a lack of players prevented FPT Can Tho University from being able to equalize the gap despite their best efforts. With a 2-3 loss, the FPT Can Tho University team is temporarily ranked last in Group B.
Tra Vinh University needs a victory to consolidate the top spot in group B, and FPT Can Tho University also needs to show more to continue to raise hope. Although, in terms of strength, Tra Vinh University is rated higher, with the advantage of the home audience, the FPT Can Tho University team will not easily let the away team overwhelm.