V-League 2025/26: The Challenging Battle for Survival

The LPBank V-League 2025/2026 is witnessing increasingly complex and intense developments. Except for CAHN holding a significant advantage on their path to the championship, everything remains open, including both the relegation battle and the competition for a top 5 finish.

There, teams from the middle of the standings downwards are still exhausted by the relegation fight. Last season, SHB Đà Nẵng only stayed in the V-League after winning the playoff match. This season, things are no better as the Han River team is straining in the survival battle. Having only secured 12 points after 18 rounds, SHB Đà Nẵng is at the bottom of the table alongside PVF-CAND. Above them, Thanh Hóa and HAGL have 16 and 18 points respectively. This situation makes the relegation race unpredictable.

Looking at the schedule, SHB Đà Nẵng cannot avoid worry. Returning from Vinh after a loss to SLNA, SHB Đà Nẵng will face two major challenges: Nam Định and Thể Công Viettel.

If they cannot break the disappointing streak, the morale of SHB Đà Nẵng players will be affected. This is what the Han River team must avoid, especially as this V-League season is heading into its final rounds. With a full squad and playing each remaining match as if it were a final, SHB Đà Nẵng is not without opportunities; the issue is to revive their spirit after three consecutive recent losses.

For CATP.HCM, they might not worry about being dragged into the relegation battle as they have already accumulated a decent "capital" with 26 points in hand. However, losing heavily in two consecutive matches is truly unpleasant for coach Lê Huỳnh Đức and his team. The 0-3 loss to Hải Phòng at Lạch Tray stadium pushed CATP.HCM into a challenging position in the ranking race, as they set high ambitions early in the season and even entered the championship race at one point.

Instead of blaming individuals, coach Lê Huỳnh Đức chose to take full responsibility himself, while providing deep analysis to defend his student Nguyễn Tiến Linh against criticism from fans.

Frankly assessing his players' performance, coach Lê Huỳnh Đức admitted this was the poorest match since the start of the season. He stated: "The fault lies with me for not being able to motivate the players and help them perform better." This admission shows the courage of an experienced leader who stands as a shield for the team during a crisis.

Although the gap with the leading group is gradually widening and the goal of reaching the top 3 is becoming more difficult, coach Lê Huỳnh Đức affirmed that the team's morale will not decline. He emphasized the motto "Do not despair in defeat, nor become arrogant in victory" to maintain focus for the remaining journey of the season.

With one-third of the remaining journey being a fierce battle to safely stay in the V-League. The lower half of the standings will engage in fiery contests to avoid relegation positions and the playoff ticket. Looking at the current standings, from SLNA's 8th position downwards, seven names are caught in this vortex: SLNA, Hồng Lĩnh Hà Tĩnh, Becamex TP.HCM, HAGL, Thanh Hóa, SHB Đà Nẵng, and PVF-CAND.

The eight remaining rounds for these teams are predicted to be scorching. Each club must learn to adapt and strive to accumulate points through each "turn." The gap between the bottom teams is not large. Therefore, they could swap positions at any moment.

To avoid the scenario of "a long night brings many dreams," every team in the relegation battle group must protect themselves and save themselves first. Moreover, the relegation race every year is extremely heated, not only in terms of skill. There is no other way; the bottom group must fight to find an escape route, knowing that countless difficulties lie ahead.