ĐÀ NẴNG — SHB Đà Nẵng begin the lunar New Year with a home fixture against Fico Cement Tây Ninh in the qualifying round of the National Football Cup on February 4th at the newly built 20,000-seat Hòa Xuân Stadium.

The team will then fly to Hà Nội to play their fifth match in the National Premier Football Championship, V.League 1, against Hà Nội T&T at Hàng Đẫy Stadium.

In other National Cup matches on February 4^th, Bình Phước face Đồng Tháp, while Sông Lam Nghệ An host Đắk Lắk.

Viettel will play against Thừa Thiên-Huế, while Hải Phòng take on Nam Định on February 5^th.

Đà Nẵng has high hopes for the cup and league, with their line-up strengthened by new recruits Britez Ezequiel David from Argentina and Brazilian Teofilo Soares Eydison.

The team also secured Vietnamese citizenship for Argentina-born striker Gaston Merlo, and the striker will now play under the Vietnamese name Đỗ Merlo.

Merlo was the top scorer in the V.League 1 last season with 24 goals, the fourth time he finished as the league’s top marksman.

Director of SHB Đà Nẵng Sport Stock Company, Bùi Xuân Hòa said Merlo wishes to stay in Đà Nẵng as his family is used to the city after having lived there for years.

The Argentinean striker has scored 92 goals between 2008 and 2016 for SHB Đà Nẵng.

The central city-based team finished third in 2016 and last won the title in 2012.

Đà Nẵng are currently fourth in the V.League 1 after four matches with seven points.

According to SHB Đà Nẵng, the new stadium, which covers an area of 10.2ha, will host all international sports in the city.

Last year, Barcelona football school in Asia and Oceania (FCBEscola) paid a working visit to the team for future co-operation in training young footballers.

 — VNS