Coach Le Duc Tuan: 'Da Nang is a lonely team fighting alone'

A goalless draw away at Ha Tinh allowed Da Nang to keep the fate of their survival campaign in their own hands. Following the game, Coach Le Duc Tuan provided significant comments on the run-in.

Da Nang secured a crucial point at Ha Tinh in round 25 of the 2025-2026 V.League when the two sides ended 0-0 on the evening of May 31. This result helped the Han River team maintain 12th place on the standings, although the gap to the chasing pack does not provide absolute safety ahead of the final round of the season.

Even though PVF-CAND has closed the points gap to 21 points, Da Nang still retains a certain advantage in the fight to avoid relegation. After the match, Coach Le Duc Tuan expressed optimism about his team's chances and emphasized that the players still hold their own fate in the final game of the season.

The Da Nang tactician acknowledged that he had anticipated the difficulties of playing away at Ha Tinh. He stated: "We predicted this would be an extremely tough match. Ha Tinh already had enough points to stay up, but with home support they had to give their all. For us, this was the most important game of the season. Moreover, the pitch at Ha Tinh was quite hard and the weather was very hot and humid."

Furthermore, Coach Le Duc Tuan also insisted that he was not surprised when the home side fielded their strongest lineup despite having already secured their objective. He remarked: "I wasn't surprised that Ha Tinh put out their strongest lineup. I've been in this profession for 10 years, so I fully understand. We have to decide our own fate; no one will help us. Da Nang is a team that 'stands alone,' so we must fight through our professional performance on the pitch."

In reality, Ha Tinh were without captain Nguyen Trong Hoang and center-back Vu Viet Trieu due to suspension. Nevertheless, the home side still created plenty of difficulties for Da Nang. Meanwhile, the visitors couldn't implement their usual flexible style of play as they do in familiar home matches.

Looking ahead to the final round, Coach Le Duc Tuan emphasized: "Da Nang's advantage is that we are provisionally in 12th place. The last match at home is the game of the entire season. I hope the fans will come and fill the stands." Da Nang will host Thanh Hoa, a team that has already secured top-flight survival. If they earn all three points, the Han River side will decide their own V.League stay, and could even finish above PVF-CAND and Becamex TP.HCM if all have 24 points, thanks to a superior head-to-head record.