Reporter (PV) : Sir , why is Song Lam Nghe An not playing as expected?

Mr. Truong Manh Linh : Night Wolf V-League 2023 has a very fierce and unpredictable competition format. Song Lam Nghe An players have tried very hard in the past period, but there have been many matches where the team was unlucky and did not achieve the desired results as well as the expectations of the fans.

We are a bit worried but will still try our best. The possibility of Song Lam Nghe An entering the top 8 to compete for the championship is still there. And at this time, Song Lam Nghe An needs to have the best spirit as well as the encouragement and support of the home audience. The "fire" of the home audience is very important to the spirit of the team in any circumstance.

Trong Hoang (left) and Song Lam Nghe An players were held to a 0-0 draw by Topenland Binh Dinh in round 12 of Night Wolf V-League 2023. Photo: VPF

PV : You once affirmed that the new Board of Directors will make every effort to preserve a Song Lam Nghe An rich in identity and tradition but also flexibly adapt to modern football. To date, how far has this plan been implemented?

Mr. Truong Manh Linh : The advantages of Song Lam Nghe An are the available foundations, the close attention of the provincial leaders and the Department of Culture and Sports of Nghe An province as well as local departments. Besides, as long as the team always listens to the thoughts of the audience and fans, everything will be favorable. We strive to bring the audience many new experiences, so that each football match at Vinh Stadium is an opportunity for everyone to come and enjoy football and entertainment.

Song Lam Nghe An has not achieved the expected results, but the audience has always accompanied the team. We think that the only difficulty is time. In terms of expertise, management, and brand building, everything needs time to become more and more perfect. Our concern and that of the V-League clubs is how to make football have more and more sources of income, from there thinking about sustainable football development, meeting the expectations of fans.

PV : In your opinion, what should the leadership of Song Lam Nghe An do to regain the trust of fans and turn Vinh Stadium back into the "hot spot" it once was?

Mr. Truong Manh Linh : As you know, coach Nguyen Huy Hoang has completed his mission and his successor at Song Lam Nghe An is head coach Phan Nhu Thuat. We have added two more experienced assistants, coach Dinh Van Dung and coach Pham Anh Tuan.

In addition, we always encourage the players to play their best for the flag, but do not put pressure on results. This year, Song Lam Nghe An has the youngest average age in Night Wolf V-League, the young players need to be comfortable and focused to perform on the field. The most important thing for Song Lam Nghe An is to gradually build and perfect a unique playing style and the most resilient competitive spirit. Playing with the spirit of "Playing well for the people to be happy, winning for the people to be happy", I believe that "Vinh's fire pot" will soon return.

Mr. Truong Manh Linh (right), General Director and CEO of Song Lam Nghe An. Photo: VAN TRUNG

PV : What is the biggest difficulty you are facing while running Song Lam Nghe An and what will you do to overcome the pressure?

Mr. Truong Manh Linh : The biggest difficulty I encountered when running Song Lam Nghe An was the time spent on the team. Besides football, business, maintaining the enterprise, and finding investment sources for Song Lam Nghe An are also very important.

However, we regularly exchange, encourage, and work with the team leaders via email, phone, etc. In the coming time, the Board of Directors and I will try to be with the team more so that the coaches and players have more motivation. I also believe that the fans will also understand the club's development direction in the modern football trend and support all the team's activities.

Our goal with Song Lam Nghe An is to make the team stand firm and create a more solid foundation within the next 5 years, gradually becoming one of the strong teams in Vietnam and Southeast Asia. Currently, everything is still in the process of being built and focused on creating internal resources from youth training, the results cannot come immediately and we still have to make a lot of effort.

PV : The leaders of Song Lam Nghe An just had a meeting with Mito HollyHock (Japan) about future cooperation orientation. What are your expectations about this cooperation?

Mr. Truong Manh Linh : Talking with Mito HollyHock club, we hope to further develop the youth training of Song Lam Nghe An in terms of expertise to improve the professionalism of the club. Mito HollyHock will send experts and coaches to train to improve the expertise of Song Lam Nghe An. More importantly, we want to improve the quality of management, learn from Mito HollyHock's model of sustainable development, that is the goal that Song Lam Nghe An is aiming for.

PV : Thank you very much!

HOAI PHUONG (performed)