Hanoi FC will visit Pohang Steelers FC in the 5th round of the 2023-2024 AFC Champions League group stage. The match will take place at Pohang's Estadio Steelyard at 5:00 p.m. tomorrow (November 29).
After 4 rounds, Pohang Club showed their superior strength when they won all 4 matches, earning the maximum 12 points. Hanoi Club lost the first 3 rounds, but defeated Wuhan Three Towns Club to win the first victory in the group stage. The chance of the Vietnamese representative to continue is slim, but Coach Le Duc Tuan is still waiting for his students to cause a shock.
"In the last round, Hanoi FC had a successful match at home, winning 2-1 against Wuhan FC. Continuing that spirit, we came here with confidence to have a dedicated match and try to get the best result against Pohang.
Coach Le Duc Tuan
The nature of each tournament and each year is different. This season, we have only won 3 points. In the remaining 2 matches, the goal we set is the same, which is to surpass the achievements of previous Vietnamese teams in the AFC Champions League," Coach Le Duc Tuan shared.
In the AFC Champions League, HAGL Club is the Vietnamese team that has won the most points in the group stage, with 7 points in the 2004 group stage. This is the tournament where HAGL played impressively, winning 2, drawing 1 after 6 matches, finishing second in the group. By 2021, Viettel Club (now The Cong - Viettel) won 6 points after 6 matches, also a positive achievement.
According to coach Le Duc Tuan, although Hanoi FC has a very tight match schedule, the team has not given up on the AFC Champions League. He emphasized: "In the coming time, Hanoi FC will have to face a tight match schedule (4 matches within 15 days), which is very difficult for the team. The coaching staff has discussed and arranged training plans as well as personnel to suit each match.
There is a view that we will give up on the AFC Champions League after just getting 3 points against Wuhan FC, but in reality that is not the case. The AFC Champions League is a big arena, we came here to represent Vietnamese football.
Hanoi FC quenched their thirst for victory in the AFC Champions League by coming from behind to defeat Wuhan
Apart from cultural issues, we want to show our best ability and level. Hanoi Club has very good human resources. Young players are also in the youth teams or the Vietnam national team. We will calculate the personnel to achieve the best results.
The goal of the coaching staff and players of Hanoi Club is to win and get 3 points. But depending on the situation on the field, we will make changes and adjustments. We try to get at least 1 point in the match against Pohang."
Hanoi FC player Pham Xuan Manh is also confident in his team's chances of scoring points. He emphasized: "I am looking forward to playing tomorrow's match with my teammates and trying my best. Hanoi FC players are very proud to be participating in the prestigious AFC Champions League and will play with the highest determination to achieve the best results.
I have only joined Hanoi FC for 2 months. Right from the moment I arrived at Hanoi FC, during the first training sessions, I felt the desire of the whole team. When entering the field, the players all set the highest goal of winning.
Xuan Manh is very confident in Hanoi Club's chances.
We have had two consecutive victories recently, which will be a great motivation for Hanoi FC to look forward to the next match with Pohang. The players and coaching staff are in very good spirits heading into this match and hope the whole team will play their best."
Xuan Manh affirmed that the whole team has been practicing with high intensity to get used to the intensity of the AFC Champions League, which is much more stressful and fierce than the V-League.
"The tempo of the matches in the AFC Champions League is much higher than in the V-League. During training, the coaching staff increased the intensity so that the players could adapt to the fierce competition.
I have played for U.23 Vietnam and the Vietnam national team, facing strong opponents. I hope that experience will support my teammates and help Hanoi FC achieve the best results," said Xuan Manh.
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