Football

Bruno Henrique (left) celebrates his goal in the match between HAGL and Sài Gòn FC. HAGL won 5-3 after a penalty shoot out. Photo of HAGL FC

HÀ NỘI — Hoàng Anh Gia Lai and Đông A Thanh Hóa secured their places in the National Cup's semi-finals after winning on September 7.

Former national champions Hoàng Anh Gia Lai (HAGL) struggled to beat Sài Gòn FC 5-3 on penalty kicks after the match ended 1-1 after 90 minutes.

Thanh Hóa meanwhile earned an easy 3-1 win over Bà Rịa Vũng Tàu on their home turf.

Being in the semis means Thanh Hóa will ensure their first ever bronze medal at the Cup. They immediately enjoy a bonus of VNĐ1.1 billion for this success.

Nguyễn Hữu Sơn opened the scoring for visiting Sài Gòn at the 66th minute of a rematch between two sides within a week at the Pleiku Stadium.

The goal came after a series of attempts that Sài Gòn, who are currently at the bottom of the national league, created to threaten HAGL goalkeeper Huỳnh Tuấn Linh.

If Hoàng Minh Tuấn and Matheus Vieira Da Silva had been sharper finishing, the result would have been 2-0 for the tourists before the second half.

National team strikers Nguyễn Công Phượng and Nguyễn Văn Toàn and foreign Brandao  created a number of chances but could not find the net.

It was new comer Bruno Henrique who made the difference. His straight close-range finish was unstoppable and helped the hosts level the score at the 71st minute.

Đỗ Merlo and Lâm Thuận nearly helped Sài Gòn to take the lead again but their shots were either denied by the referee or the cross bar.

HAGL will wait for their opponent in the semis, who is the winner of the match between defending champions Hà Nội FC and Bình Phước, playing later on September 8.

At Thanh Hóa Stadium, hosts Thanh Hóa easily grabbed the upper hand from early on against Bình Phước from the lower division.

Midfielder Lê Văn Thắng scored twice and assisted in his best game of the season.

Lê Văn Thắng is man of the match between Thanh Hóa and Bình Phước. Photo of Đông A Thanh Hóa FC

The veteran sent a perfect ball to Hoàng Đình Tùng, who opened the score in the 26th minute.

He later netted in the 55th and 80th minutes before Bình Phước's Nguyễn Văn Thạnh narrowed at the 87th minute.

Thanh Hóa will play their first semi-final match against the winner of the match between Viettel FC and Topenland Bình Định.

Thanh Hóa assistant coach Svetislav Tanasijevic praised his players and said whoever the next rival was his team would do its best to gain a positive result. VNS