Northern qualifiers close, goodbye to emotional roller coaster

Nothing is impossible

To find the typical match for the northern qualifying round of the 2nd Vietnam Youth Student Football Tournament - 2024 THACO Cup, the play-off match between Dai Nam University and Hanoi University of Physical Education and Sports deserves to be the number 1 candidate.

Because on the emotional roller coaster that the two teams brought on the afternoon of March 5, the quintessence of student football was shown.

Khép lại vòng loại phía bắc, tạm biệt chuyến tàu lượn cảm xúc- Ảnh 1. — The joy of the winner...

Khép lại vòng loại phía bắc, tạm biệt chuyến tàu lượn cảm xúc- Ảnh 2. — ...and the loser's sadness made for a very emotional play-off.

That is the Dai Nam University team, although they were rated much lower in terms of combat experience and human quality, but with reasonable tactics and high determination, they made the Hanoi University of Physical Education and Sports face a really big challenge. Not many teams in the student football field can put the Hanoi University of Physical Education and Sports into a corner, having to struggle to find an equalizer and then chase the score, even though it was the University of Water Resources team. However, a team that is still very new in the student playground like the Dai Nam University team was able to do that.

However, the Hanoi University of Physical Education and Sports also had a "stage" to prove their mettle. That was in the second half, when they had to play 10 vs 11 (the goalkeeper received a red card), then only 9 vs 11 when a player was injured but the substitution rights were exhausted, but the students of Coach Pham Minh still played with great effort. The persistent efforts and burning desire of the Hanoi University of Physical Education and Sports made the audience not feel the difference in the number of players between the two teams, which was only 2 people.

In a very hot match on a hot afternoon in Hanoi, the balance of strength and weakness reversed continuously. The Dai Nam University team went from weak to strong when they took the lead and played with more players, then the Hanoi University of Physical Education and Sports, which was stronger, became the "underdog", and then made a spectacular comeback.

Khép lại vòng loại phía bắc, tạm biệt chuyến tàu lượn cảm xúc- Ảnh 3. — In football, nothing is impossible.

However, the best and most emotional thing about student football is not within the narrow framework of expertise. It is also the spirit of the youth and students. The image of the coaching staff and players on the sidelines shouting until their throats are hoarse to encourage their spirit, the passionate and emotional celebration of the winning team and the bitter tears of the losing team falling on the Thuy Loi stadium are the "aftertaste" of a complete football feast. There are enough joys, anger, love, hate, professional drama, penalties, red cards, comebacks, smiles and tears...

All that said, student football is wonderful, with the spirit of dedication, the desire to win, the youthful energy and the precious innocence of the "non-professional" players. The Vietnamese Youth Student Football Stadium is a roller coaster that takes fans from one extreme to another on the "pendulum" of emotions. And the final round in Ho Chi Minh City from March 15 to March 31 promises to have many more matches worth watching.

Class speaks out

The two tickets to the northern qualifying round of the 2nd Vietnam Youth Student Football Tournament - 2024 were named Thuy Loi University and Hanoi University of Physical Education and Sports. These are also 2 of the 3 teams representing the North in the final round in 2024. That shows that, in the student football playground, although drama can appear in any match, experience and courage are the "compass" that points the way to glory.

Khép lại vòng loại phía bắc, tạm biệt chuyến tàu lượn cảm xúc- Ảnh 4. — Thuyloi University team overcomes difficulties

The team of Thuyloi University convincingly won against the team of Phuong Dong University (7-0), the team of National Economics University (4-0) and defeated the extremely strong opponent named Bac Ninh University of Sports and Physical Education (1-0).

Meanwhile, the Hanoi University of Physical Education and Sports team won against the Hanoi University of Construction (4-0), Phenikaa University (6-0) and defeated Dai Nam University with a score of 5-4 on penalties, after a 3-3 draw in 80 minutes.

There are easy matches, and there are matches that require "skin peeling and scourging" to win, but after all, these are the two strongest and most worthy representatives to be present in the final round. After many years of struggling in the student football field, the University of Water Resources and the Hanoi University of Physical Education and Sports will be the strong candidates for the championship in this year's tournament.