European coach points directly to the top team as the favorite to win the V-League 2025/26

Coach Popov considers CAHN the most likely contender to claim the V-League 2025/26 title and commended HAGL before their upcoming round 8 encounter.

In the latest match of round 7 in the V-League, The Cong Viettel club staged a dramatic comeback against SHB Da Nang, securing a 2-1 victory thanks to goals from Dinh Xuan Tien and Nham Manh Dung. On the other side, Milan Makaric opened the scoring for the visitors but couldn’t maintain the lead.

At the post-match press conference, Coach Popov made several notable remarks, including naming the championship favorite this season. The Bulgarian coach stated:

"Calling Viettel the title favorite is premature. There are still many strong teams in the competition. In my view, the biggest rival and the team with the most potential is CAHN. But there are also other teams like Ninh Binh, Hanoi, Nam Dinh, and Ho Chi Minh City Police...”

Additionally, the head coach of the soldiers’ team surprisingly praised HAGL – their next round opponent. According to Coach Popov, although HAGL hasn’t won any matches this season, they will be the toughest opponent for The Cong Viettel:

“It will be a very challenging match. Everyone knows that playing at Pleiku has never been easy. Their current position on the standings does not truly reflect HAGL’s capabilities. Among the remaining away games this season, I consider HAGL the hardest challenge.”

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