Vietnam's 'Captain' Reports Unfortunate News After Malaysia Match

Midfielder Nguyen Hoang Duc Suffers Knee Injury After Malaysia Victory, Forced to Miss Crucial Upcoming Matches for Ninh Binh Club.

According to confirmation from Ninh Binh Club, Hoang Duc Experienced Knee Issues Immediately After Vietnam's 3-1 Victory Over Malaysia in the 2027 Asian Cup Qualifiers. Following the match on March 31st, the 1998-born midfielder showed signs of pain and was promptly taken for hospital examination. Diagnostic results indicated the primary cause was overuse, requiring him to temporarily stop playing to follow a medical treatment plan.

Although the injury is not overly severe, the medical team still requires Hoang Duc to rest completely for approximately 2-3 weeks to avoid recurrence risk. This means the captain midfielder of Ninh Binh will miss two consecutive away matches against HAGL at Pleiku Stadium and Becamex TP.HCM in rounds 17 and 18 of V.League.

Before the injury, Hoang Duc continued to demonstrate his irreplaceable role for both club and national team. He performed notably in matches against Bangladesh and Malaysia, showcasing elite handling and dangerous long-range shooting ability. Particularly, his shot that hit the crossbar in the Malaysia match highlighted the impressive form of the player who won Vietnam's Golden Ball 2025.

The absence of the "captain" in the midfield will certainly significantly impact both the playing style and ambitions of Ninh Binh. The team is experiencing a streak of 5 consecutive matches without a win and has fallen to 3rd place on the standings with 28 points. The gap with the top two teams, Công An Hà Nội and Thể Công Viettel, has respectively reached 13 and 6 points, making pressure in the upcoming phase increasingly heavy.

In the context of a dense match schedule and increasingly fierce V.League competition, Hoang Duc's absence is not only a tactical challenge but also greatly affects the team's morale. Ninh Binh will have to find a reasonable alternative solution if they do not want to continue losing points in this season's ranking race.