There were joyous scenes at the Thien Truong Stadium on Tuesday as Thep Xanh Nam Dinh claimed only their second V.League 1 title after thrashing Khanh Hoa FC 5-1. All three of the Knights of Thanh Nam’s Brazilian stars found their way into the scoresheet, with Rafaelson scoring a hat-trick and both Hendrio and Lucas Alves scoring one a piece.
Taking on a Khanh Hoa side already assured of relegation, Nam Dinh knew that a win would clinch them their first V.League 1 title since 1985, regardless of any result gained by closest rivals MerryLand Quy Nhon Binh Dinh. The two sides were separated by only four points coming into Tuesday’s penultimate round.
With supporters being allowed into the Thien Truong free-of-charge, the passionate Nam Dinh fanbase packed the 30,000 capacity arena, with some even being forced to spectate the match from outside the stadium due to its full capacity.
Nam Dinh head coach Vu Hong Viet fielded his strongest lineup, with Tran Nguyen Manh in goal, Nguyen Phong Hong Duy and Duong Thanh Hao in defense, To Van Vu in the wings, Nguyen Van Toan in attack, and the three Brazilians in their respective positions – Lucas in defense, Hendrio in midfield, and Rafaelson spearheading the attack.
Khanh Hoa, on the other hand, were without Douglas Coutinho – who was on loan from Nam Dinh – and the suspended Watz Leazard.
Spurred on by their overwhelming support, Nam Dinh took the lead in the 13th minute. Rafaelson managed to poke the ball through the Khanh Hoa defense, feeding Hendrio who easily made it 1-0 past Vo Ngoc Cuong in the Khanh Hoa goal.
The Knights of Thanh Nam then made it 2-0 in the 42nd minute, with Rafaelson taking advantage of some scrappy Khanh Hoa defending to force Ngoc Cuong to pick the ball from the back of the net.
Nguyen Minh Loi’s header in the first minute of stoppage time ensured that Khanh Hoa would slash the deficit by half coming into half-time, but the second half saw Nam Dinh ruthlessly manhandle their opponents.
Rafaelson – currently in the running to be naturalized as a Vietnamese citizen – restored Nam Dinh’s two-goal advantage in the 52nd minute, taking advantage of a Van Vu cross from the left.
Hendrio then orchestrated Nam Dinh’s fourth goal in the 81st minute, swinging in a corner from the left that was thumped into Ngoc Cuong’s goal by Lucas’ powerful header.
There was still time for Nam Dinh to fire home a fifth and it was Rafaelson with the goal that completed his hat-trick in the 84th minute. Latching onto an excellent ball from substitute Ho Khac Ngoc, Rafaelson weaved his way into the Khanh Hoa defense before firing a shot that went beyond Ngoc Cuong’s reaches.
Once the referee’s whistle blew for full-time, the entirety of Thien Truong erupted in celebrations, with Binh Dinh’s 1-1 draw away at Becamex Binh Duong at the same time practically sealed Nam Dinh’s second V.League 1 title.
The 2023/24 V.League 1 triumph represented the pinnacle of Nam Dinh’s recent rise after a tumultuous period. Despite only having the 1985 league title to their name, the Knights of Thanh Nam were still a force in Vietnamese football during the early 2000s, posting two runners-up finishes in 2000/01 and 2004, and even playing in the AFC Champions League in 2008 following their triumph in the 2007 Vietnamese National Cup.
However, financial troubles began to beset the team and Nam Dinh were relegated to the V.League 2 at the end of the 2010 season, before being relegated further into the Vietnamese Second Division at the end of the 2011 campaign – a double relegation.
Nam Dinh languished in the third tier of Vietnamese football until 2014 when they were promoted into the V.League 2, and even then they had to stay in the second tier until promotion in 2017.
The Knights of Thanh Nam’s time in the top-flight were also quite tumultuous, as Nam Dinh bravely avoided relegation in 2018 (13th place and won relegation play-off), 2019 (11th place), and 2020 (13th place, equal on points with 14th placed Quang Nam FC who were relegated with a better goal difference).
Goals from Rodrigo Dias and the late Oussou Konan ensured that Nam Dinh were once again vying for the top in the 2021 season, but the COVID-19 pandemic meant that their rise was cut short thanks to the season’s abolishment, with Nam Dinh finishing 4th.
2022 saw Nam Dinh once again ending up in the lower reaches of the V.League 1 table with a 12th placed finish, but everything changed in 2023 once Xuan Thien Group, a Ninh Binh Province-based construction, energy, and development company, through their Sapphire Steel (Thep Xanh) subsidiary, started investing in Nam Dinh.
The Cong-Viettel’s 2020 V.League 1 title-winning team were stripped for resources, with goalkeeper Nguyen Manh and midfielder Khac Ngoc swapping the Hang Day for the Thien Truong. LPBank Hoang Anh Gia Lai’s young squad was also raided following their pole position finish in the abolished 2021 season, with Phong Hong Duy and Nguyen Huu Tuan joining Nam Dinh from the Mountain Men, while Hendrio and Thanh Hao joined from Binh Dinh.
With these reinforcements, the first season under Xuan Thien’s investment saw Nam Dinh finish 5th in the 2023 season.
The rebuild continues during the 2023/24 off-season, with Binh Dinh once again being raided for prolific striker Rafaelson and midfielder Ly Cong Hoang Anh among others. Ex-HAGL striker Van Toan was brought home after an underwhelming spell in South Korea with Seoul E-Land, while Van Vu joins from 2023 champions Cong An Ha Noi.
Xuan Tien’s heavy investments were paid-off shortly afterwards, with Nam Dinh not only lifting the 2023/24 V.League 1 title, but also qualifying for the 2024/25 AFC Champions League Two – the Knights of Thanh Nam’s first continental bow since that 2008 ACL campaign. Nam Dinh are also in the semifinals of the 2023/24 Vietnamese National Cup, taking on defending champions Dong A Thanh Hoa in July 4th for a chance to claim a domestic double.