Defeating PVF in the penalty shootout, LPBank Hoang Anh Gia Lai won the National U21 Championship

On the afternoon of August 12, U21 LPBank Hoang Anh Gia Lai faced off against "reigning champion" U21 PVF in the final match of the National U21 Football Championship held at the PVF Youth Football Training Center (Hung Yen).

True to the tense nature of a final, both teams chose to play tightly and were ready to defend from afar with fierce interceptions.

After a period of probing play at the beginning of the match, U21 LPBank Hoang Anh Gia Lai pushed up their formation and created some dangerous situations right in front of the opponent's penalty area. However, the dedication of the U21 PVF defense prevented striker Hoang Minh Tien and captain Nguyen Quoc Viet from putting the ball into the net.

On the U21 PVF side, despite actively defending, coach Nguyen Duy Dong's team also created a number of dangerous counter-attack opportunities, notably the header by striker Nguyen Gia Bao, sending the ball over the crossbar of U21 LPBank Hoang Anh Gia Lai's goal.

The balance of the match was maintained throughout the first half, the two teams left the field with a 0-0 draw.

In the second half, the reigning U21 champion PVF sent midfielders Dao Quang Anh, Bui Hoang Son and Le Thang Long to strengthen the midfield. However, with Hoang Anh Gia Lai's increasingly disciplined defense towards the end of the match, no goals were scored during the entire 90 minutes of official play and the two teams had to enter a penalty shootout to determine the championship.

Right in the first round of shots, Nguyen Le Phat of U21 PVF missed the shot when he could not defeat goalkeeper Tran Trung Kien, while Nguyen Duc Viet calmly fooled the goalkeeper, helping U21 LPBank Hoang Anh Gia Lai take a 1-0 lead in the penalty shootout.

Players from both teams successfully executed the next two shots. In the fourth shot, substitute Dao Quang Anh could not overcome the pressure and hit the post. Dinh Thanh Dat then successfully executed the decisive shot, bringing LPBank Hoang Anh Gia Lai to the title of the 2024 National U21 tournament.

Winning 4-2 in a nerve-wracking penalty shootout against PVF, the "Mountain City Team" won the national U21 tournament for the second time, after the first championship in 2017. For U21 PVF, the defeat in the penalty shootout made coach Nguyen Duy Dong's team become the former champion of the tournament and missed the opportunity to win the "double" for two consecutive years, after winning the championship last year (winning against U21 Song Lam Nghe An).