SHB Danang secure top spot; Hoang Anh gain first win
Tay Ninh, Quang Nam top First Division after three games
By Vu Duc - The Saigon Times Daily
HCMC – Defending champions SHB Danang took the top place of the V-League – PetroVietnam Gas 2010 after blanking Khanh Hoa 2-0 on Sunday while Hoang Anh Gia Lai ended their disappointing run with a home win over runners-up Becamex Binh Duong in the third round.
The clash between Hoang Anh Gia Lai and Becamex Binh Duong was the most interesting in the round as the two teams are strong favorites to win the league title. Moreover, Hoang Anh needed a win after two losses in the tournament.
Hoang Anh started the match without American expatriate Lee Nguyen, who left the Pleiku-based club last week. Nguyen’s absence puts the team into a crisis since the departure of Thai center half Datsakorn Thonglao earlier this season caused a weakness.
Hoang Anh has no points at the moment after a 2-4 away loss to Khanh Hoa in the first round and a 1-2 home defeat to Hoa Phat Hanoi in the second round.
Meanwhile, Binh Duong faced difficulties in the clash when Argentine striker Molina Gaston Eduardo suddenly died last Friday from a drug overdose in HCMC.
Minh Thien opened the score for his team in the 15th minute. Evaldo finalized the game in the 72nd minute to give Hoang Anh its first victory since the beginning of the V-League.
Meanwhile, Hanoi T&T had their winning streak snapped in an 0-2 loss to Dong Tam Long An Tiles in the Mekong Delta province of Long An. Despite the away loss, Hanoi T&T still lead in the ranking table with six points from three games.
With a 3-2 victory over Port Authority FC of Thailand in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) championship last week, SHB Danang were more confident in the home game. Gaston Merlo and Quang Cuong scored two goals in the 33rd and 77th minutes, helping SHB Danang move to the top spot with six points from two games.
Binh Duong, Hanoi T&T, SHB Danang and Hoa Phat Hanoi, who beat Lam Son Thanh Hoa 3-2 at Hang Day Stadium, have six points each but SHB Danang stayed above thanks to goal difference.
Underdogs Haiphong and Navibank Saigon surprisingly beat their stronger rivals in the third round. Haiphong thrashed Song Lam Nghe An 4-2 in the central city of Vinh while Navibank Saigon beat Nam Dinh 2-1 at Nam Dinh’s Thien Truong Stadium.
With the victory, Haiphong climbed to seventh place with four points from one win, one draw and one loss, while Song Lam dropped to 12th place with two points, just one point behind Hoang Anh.
Dong Thap moved to sixth position with four points after trouncing Vissai Ninh Binh 5-2 at Cao Lanh Stadium while Ninh Binh ranked ninth with the same points.
Nam Dinh and Lam Son Thanh Hoa have earned one point each after three games but Thanh Hoa rank last due to goal difference.
* Tay Ninh and Quang Nam took the lead of Vietnam’s First Division from Binh Dinh in the third round on Saturday, while the bottom-placed Viettel had only one point after three games.
Quang Nam beat Binh Dinh 1-0 in their hometown while Tay Ninh shared one point after a 1-1 draw with Can Tho in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho. Quang Nam and Tay Ninh have earned five points each after three games, but Tay Ninh rank first thanks to goal difference.
An Giang lost 1-2 to HCMC Club at Thong Nhat Stadium. The 12th-placed An Giang have earned two points from three games, leaving them one point clear of bottom-placed Viettel, who were defeated 0-2 by Quang Ninh Coal.
In other games Saturday, Hue defeated Dong Nai 1-0 at Tu Do Stadium and TDC Binh Duong secured a 2-1victory over Tien Giang in the Mekong Delta’s My Tho City.