Don't 'cry' for the champion and runner-up!

Champion and runner-up… 'fall from power'

When the two teams of Thuy Loi University and Ho Chi Minh City University of Physical Education and Sports entered the championship match of the 2nd Vietnam Student Youth Football Tournament - 2024 (TNSV THACO Cup 2024), experts assessed this as a battle between the two most powerful forces in the current Vietnamese student football village.

Thuyloi University is very familiar with the finals. Similarly, Ho Chi Minh City University of Physical Education and Sports has conquered glory in many major tournaments.

At that time, perhaps few people expected that both the defending champion (Ho Chi Minh City University of Physical Education and Sports) and the runner-up (Water Resources University) would not pass the qualifying round of the TNSV THACO Cup 2025. That unbelievable scenario happened.

The defending champion, Ho Chi Minh City University of Physical Education and Sports (white shirt), stopped.

The current runner-up of Irrigation leaves the game.

Thuyloi University stopped at the northern qualifying round play-off, after losing to Thanh Hoa University of Culture, Sports and Tourism on penalties (0-0 draw in regular time). Ho Chi Minh City University of Physical Education and Sports suffered the same fate when losing to Ho Chi Minh City University of Industry also in the play-off, and also… on penalties.

The two teams also lost in the same penalty shootout scenario: the opponent missed the first shot, but the defending champion and the defending runner-up both "shot themselves in the foot" with inexplicable missed kicks, leading to having to stay home to watch the final round.

With the current runner-up, Ho Chi Minh City University of Physical Education and Sports, coach Pham Thai Vinh admitted that his team did not play as well as their opponents in the official 80 minutes. And in the penalty shootout, the players also failed because they were not as well prepared as their opponents. While the players of Ho Chi Minh City University of Industry kicked extremely dangerously and decisively, the players of Ho Chi Minh City University of Physical Education and Sports kicked relatively loosely. The unstable mentality at the decisive moment paid a heavy price.

After winning the championship last year, the team of Ho Chi Minh City University of Physical Education and Sports has rejuvenated its force. However, the void left by striker Nguyen Minh Nhat, along with the rise of the opponents, has left coach Pham Thai Vinh and his team unable to react in time.

Penalty shootouts become an obsession for many teams

In the same situation, the team of Thuy Loi University stopped at the qualifying round right at home, when they could not overcome the fear of penalty shootouts. The current runner-up of Thuy Loi lost 2 final matches of the Vietnamese Youth Student Football Tournament, as well as 2 final matches of other student tournaments in the past 2 years, all on penalties. This series of lucky kicks became a psychological barrier, causing the students of Coach Vu Van Trung to be bitterly eliminated from the competition by a rookie team.

When the qualifying round is as tough as the final round

The 2025 TNSV THACO Cup qualifiers have 67 teams participating, but only 11 teams are selected for the final round. Thus, on average, out of 6 teams, only 1 team will have a ticket to continue. At the draw ceremony, many coaches admitted: TNSV THACO Cup is unpredictable and heated right from the qualifying round. No team will automatically have a ticket to continue, but must enter a fierce competition.

It cannot be said that the teams of the University of Water Resources or the University of Physical Education and Sports of Ho Chi Minh City were lax. Both the defending champion and runner-up have “hidden their troops” very carefully, entered the field with the spirit of respecting their opponents, and put all their efforts into the goal of advancing.

However, the development of football movement in many universities has created quality teams. For example, in the first time participating in the tournament, the team of Thanh Hoa University of Culture, Sports and Tourism defeated the runner-up of Thuy Loi, or the team of Hanoi University of Industry also caused difficulties for the team of Hanoi University of Physical Education and Sports until the last seconds.

Last year, the defending champion Hue University was highly rated, but also stopped in the qualifying round after losing to the team of Da Nang University of Sports. This year, this team also had to "scratch their skin and peel their scales" to get a ticket back to the final round. As the teams become more professional, improve their level and battle spirit, the TNSV THACO Cup will witness many more surprises. However, that is the pure beauty of football.

The 2025 TNSV THACO Cup Finals will be worth watching!

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/dung-khoc-cho-nha-vo-dich-va-a-quan-185250116211125385.htm