No team in V.League 2023 has to receive as many penalty cards as Dong A Thanh Hoa after the first 4 rounds. Of the team’s 16 yellow cards, there are 12 for players and 4 for coaching staff. Interestingly, the club’s 12 cards are evenly distributed to 12 different players or in other words, no player from Dong A Thanh Hoa has received two yellow cards in a row.
With the Thanh Hoa Dong A coaching staff, head coach Velizar Popov alone received two cards, the rest were assistants. That was in the East Asian matches Thanh Hoa against SLNA and Da Nang.
Dong A Thanh Hoa club received 16 yellow cards after 4 matches. Photo: Bao Ngoc.
In many seasons, a large number of cards often goes against the club’s ranking. This season, Dong A Thanh Hoa makes an exception when it is one of the four best teams in the V.League at the moment. Club B. Binh Duong ranked penultimate also received only 13 yellow cards, 3 less than Dong A Thanh Hoa.
In the top group of clubs, Binh Dinh and Nam Dinh received 4 yellow cards, Hanoi FC got 5. The teams that received the least cards were Hai Phong and Ha Tinh (with 3 cards) standing in the top middle of the rankings.
The reason for Dong A Thanh Hoa’s penalty card phenomenon lies in the gameplay. Since coach Velizar Popov arrived, Dong A Thanh Hoa has played more disciplined and bloodier. The team can attack well and beautifully, but when needed, it can also create a defensive wall that is difficult to penetrate and is ready to trade with a penalty card. The proof is that after 4 matches, Dong A Thanh Hoa only had to concede 1 goal, at least in the tournament. They are also the only team to silence the defending champion Hanoi FC in the last 4 round.
Coach Velizar Popov is turning East Asia Thanh Hoa into a formidable force in V.League 2023. Photo: Bao Ngoc.
The squad of Thanh Hoa Dong A Club does not have excellent foreign soldiers or stars who are famous players. This season, Dong A Thanh Hoa called Hoang Thai Binh, last year’s player who contributed to Hai Phong’s V.League runner-up, to strengthen the defense. The Dong A Thanh Hoa midfield also only added A Mit from Da Nang to share the fire with Le Pham Thanh Long. On the attack, Dong A Thanh Hoa also has only Lam Ti Phong, a former U23 player in Vietnam, who is notable.
The starless collective of Dong A Thanh Hoa is still able to make a phenomenon. If two wins against Khanh Hoa and Da Nang and a draw with SLNA are not enough, the performance against defending champion Hanoi in round 4 has confirmed how formidable Dong A Thanh Hoa is this season.
Before Hanoi, Dong A Thanh Hoa dared to play fair and square attacks, not only overcoming the imposed attacking style but also creating as many dangerous opportunities as the opponent. The 0-0 draw of Dong A Thanh Hoa against Hanoi is not as faint as the score, but confirms a rising phenomenon in the V.League.
It was not until the match against Dong A Thanh Hoa that Hanoi’s head coach Bozidar Bandovic, who has won the Thai League many times, exclaimed: “I think today, we met a really good team.”
Dong A Thanh Hoa left a mark thanks to the significant contribution of coach Velizar Popov. Coming from an Eastern European country (Bulgaria), Popov’s style is as strong as his predecessor Ljupko Petrovic. On the training ground, Coach Popov helps the Dong A Thanh Hoa team to be disciplined in both professionalism and fighting spirit. On the field, his fiery style of direction conveys strong enthusiasm to his students.
The stubbornness is a common feature of many teams that have passed through the hands of coach Popov, the most recent of which is U23 Myanmar. Before Popov’s arrival, Myanmar’s young players played flamboyantly but undisciplined, possibly very good, but also fragile and prone to collapse. The arrival of Coach Popov changed everything.
In the period from 2019 to 2023, Mr. Popov turned Myanmar U23 into a very difficult team to beat, with the result being a bronze medal at SEA Games 30. When Myanmar U23 met Vietnam at SEA Games 31, Coach Park Hang-seo had to admitted: “If they were left to play, they would have performed very well.”
Many unknown Myanmar players have also changed their lives thanks to shining at the SEA Games under Coach Popov. Hein Htet Aung, Aung Kaung Man or Lwin Moe Aung all exported to Thailand or Malaysia, which have better football backgrounds in the country. Coach Popov is very charming with such ordinary teams. Thanh Hoa East Asia Club this season promises to bring more imprints under the leadership of Mr. Popov.
Dong A Thanh Hoa is equal in points and goal difference – lost with Nam Dinh, but ranked behind due to poor away goals and more penalty cards.