VietNamNet Bridge – Song Lam Nghe An crushed Maldives VB Sport 4-2 to enter the knockout round of the Asian Football Confederation Cup for the first time yesterday, May 11.

Making a point: Song Lam Nghe An's Nguyen Ngoc Anh celebrates as the central region team crushes Maldives VB Sport 4-2 to enter the knockout round of the Asian Football Confederation Cup for the first time yesterday. (Photo: VNS)

The team had the advantage of playing on home turf while their opponents had already eliminated from the tournament.

The Vietnamese team need a win to ensure their top place in Group F and to make future progression easier. Nghe An ranked first with 11 points after six matches.

"Nghe An pocketed three points from the first leg match when we played a substitute lineup. We took the second leg win to top the group," said coach Nguyen Huu Thang.

"We kicked off the game with suitable players because we have to save energy for a V-League match at the end of the week. We will not give up our AFC Cup nor our V-League dreams" said Thang, whose team is leading the first leg of the national premier league.

Faced with increasingly hot weather, VB Sport underwent their first training session at Vinh Stadium on Monday.

The Maldivian team defeated Indonesia's Sriwijaya 2-0 last week.

In another group match TSW Pegasus from Hong Kong will play Sriwijaya, the winner of which will proceed to the next round.

In a Group G match played on Tuesday, V-League defending champions Ha Noi T&T defeated Victory SC from the Maldives 1-0.

Le Hong Minh scored four minutes after the start of the game, helping to ensure the team's second win, despite which they had to proudly say goodbye because of being knocked out of the tournament during a previous match.

VietNamNet/Viet Nam News