HÀ NỘI — Hải Phòng extended their lead over other teams in the V.League following their 1-0 win over FLC Thanh Hóa yesterday.

After their ninth win, they are now securely holding the top position with 28 points, nine more than runner-up Becamex Bình Dương, who just scored a 1-1 draw with Sài Gòn FC.

FLC Thanh Hóa’s loss meant they became the third-place team, with as many points as Becamex Bình Dương.

Local top scorer of 2015, Lê Văn Thắng, scored the only goal for the leading Hải Phòng just five minutes before the interval at Thanh Hóa Stadium.

His goal ended FLC Thanh Hóa’s hope of enjoying a bonus of VNĐ1 billion for a win that the team’s managers hung prior to the match.

Defending champions Becamex Bình Dương, despite their home ground advantage, failed to make use of playing before their fans.

Sài Gòn’s Trịnh Duy Long opened the score 15 minutes after the break with a straight shoot.

The host then equalized the score when captain Nguyễn Anh Đức’s powerful kick found the net just four minutes later.

It was another unexpected result for champions Becamex Bình Dương after their sudden loss of 1-2 to Quảng Nam last week.

Meanwhile, newcomer Sài Gòn FC maintained the fourth position with only one point less than the top-three.

In another match, former winners Sông Lam Nghệ An buried 10-man Đồng Tháp in the bottom of the table, after their 3-0 win at Vinh Stadium yesterday.

Hồ Khắc Ngọc, Ouattara Baba S. Affoloh and Quế Ngọc Hải scored one each for the host, who played with 10 players in the last 20 minutes when goalkeeper Phạm Đức Anh was sent off.

It was Đồng Tháp’s 10th defeat after 11 rounds. They had only one win over Hoàng Anh Gia Lai in the fourth round in March.

The team that was said to be one of the relegated candidates this season are five points less than their nearest rivals, Long An, who also suffered a loss of 1-3 to SHB Đà Nẵng on Saturday.

At Hàng Đẫy Stadium, hosts Hà Nội T&T beat Quảng Nam 3-0.

With one more goal in this match, Hoàng Vũ Samson proved his quality with nine goals, making him the best scorer in V.League, at present.

Earlier, Nguyễn Quang Hải made it 2-0 before former striker Paris Saint Germain Loris Arnaud opened the score at the 37th minute.

In two other games on Saturday, Sanna Khánh Hòa trounced Hoàng Anh Gia Lai 4-1 and Quảng Ninh Coal beat Cần Thơ 2-1.

Clubs will have nearly four weeks off when players are summoned for the national squad and the U21 team later this month.

Matches will return on June 19 in stadiums throughout the country. — VNS