The Vietnamese side were crowned V.League champions for the second successive year last Thursday, but celebrations have been cut short with the Continental competition clash coming just days later in a campaign that could yet yield further silverware.
Hanoi have played more games than any other side to reach this stage of the tournament, while the ASEAN Zonal champions are also into the semi-finals of the Vietnamese Cup as they seek an unprecedented treble for a V.League club
“After winning the V.league with two games to spare, the spirit among the players is so high,” revealed Dinh Nghiem.
“We are now fully focused on the Inter-Zone Final and the semi-final of the national cup. Having got to this stage, we are determined to book our ticket to the AFC Cup Final.”
But while the mood among the camp is positive, Dinh Nghiem is well aware they face strong opposition in the form of East Asia Zonal champions 4.25
And in addition to star left-back Doan Van Hau having recently departed on loan to SC Heerenveen in the Netherlands, the head coach has further injury concerns among his players.
“We have a problem on the left because of the injury to Pham Van Nam and the absence of Doan Van Hau,” noted Dinh Nghiem
“Pham Duc Huy and Nguyen Van Dung have not reached 100 percent physical strength yet but we’ll try and overcome this.
“4.25 are not easy to play against as they like to press the opposition and they have some very good players, especially Kim Yu-song and Rim Chol-min. But we will give everything we have and try our best to win.”
Opposite number O Yun-son, meanwhile, is well aware of the task that faces his players, who are appearing in the AFC Cup knockout stage for the third successive season.
Having lost out to Turkmenistan’s Altyn Asyr last year, the Pyongyang team will be determined to go one stage further this time round.
“I think both teams have overcome many tough opponents to advance to the Inter-Zone Final so we’re both very strong,” said O.
“We know Nguyen Van Quyet and Nguyen Quang Hai are very talented so we have to be very strong to try and stop them.
“It’s hard to talk about the differences between the two teams, but the result of tomorrow’s game will show us."
