Striker Rafaelson Bezerra Fernandes of Nam Định. — Photo vtcnews.vn

HÀ NỘI — Rafaelson Bezerra Fernandes has just become the first player in eight years to surpass the 20-goal mark in a V.League 1 season.

in 2016, Đỗ Merlo scored 24 goals for Đà Nẵng and Fernandes 21 goals for Nam Định.

With Fernandes’ current form and six matches left in the the V.League 1 2023/2024 season he could go on to break the record for goals in one Vietnamese football season, currently held by Lê Huỳnh Đức with 25 goals for HCM City Police Club in 1996.

However, Rafaelson's two goals could not help Nam Định avoid a 2-4 defeat against Hải Phòng FC on May 22. Lucas Vinicius Gonçalves Silva topped Fernandes' form, scoring a hat-trick for the away team.

The score line against Nam Định means Silva is now in second place in the V-League 2023/2024 top goal scorer rankings, with 11 goals for Hải Phòng. Behind Silva are Alan Grafite (ten goals for Bình Định) and Rimario Allando Gordon (nine goals for Thanh Hóa).

As for domestic footballers, Tiến Linh and Quang Hải have both scored seven goals, while Văn Quyết and Văn Toàn have both put six in the net. VNS