Nam Dinh CLB is increasingly falling away from the top 3.

The 1-1 draw on Becamex TP.HCM's home ground not only caused Nam Dinh to lose momentum in the race for the top 3 but also exposed Xuân Son's lack of effectiveness. The squad under coach Vu Hong Viet may have to "let go" of the V-League to invest in their goal at the ASEAN Shopee Cup.

On the Binh Duong pitch on the evening of April 25th,Xuân Sonexperienced a match that typified Nam Dinh's stagnation this season.

Vietnam's top striker was very diligent, very energetic, but lacked decisive moments. In a situation where the visiting team controlled more of the ball and created continuous pressure,the striker born in 1997still could not score.

The most notable situation was the goal scored in the 79th minute not being recognized due to an offside foul, ending a day of ineffective play.

To be fair,Xuân Sondid not play poorly. He still moved widely, contested actively, and created a few notable finishing attempts. But the problem is that he has been figured out. And the person who best performed that task was Ho Tan Tai.

The former national team player had a nearly perfect match by closely marking, accurately judging situations, and not giving the opponent space to handle. Tan Tai's strong return after injury not only helped Becamex TP.HCM stabilize in defense but also opened the opportunity to return to the national team in the near future.

While Xuân Son remained "silent," on the host team's side, a name full of vitality emerged, that of his national team teammate Nguyen Tran Viet Cuong. The Becamex TP.HCM striker continued his impressive form by scoring the opening goal from the 3rd minute with a quick, clean, and decisive finish.

That was not a random moment, but the accumulation of stable form since the start of the season. With 6 goals, Viet Cuong is leading the domestic scoring list, equal to Nguyen Hoang Duc, and clearly deserves the selection on the national team by coach Kim Sang Sik.

Becamex TP.HCM still could not break away due to the inefficiency of the satellites around Viet Cuong. Opportunities for Thanh Long or Oduenyi passed by regretfully, preventing the host team from increasing the gap.

And when unable to "finish off" the opponent, Becamex TP.HCM had to pay with Nam Dinh's equalizing goal in the second half. Giap Tuân Duong with a long-range shot using his non-dominant foot minutes after being substituted on helped Nam Dinh avoid defeat against Becamex TP.HCM for the second time this season.

For Nam Dinh, the 1 point obtained is not enough to soothe the disappointment. After 20 rounds, the squad under coach Vu Hong Viet has only 28 points and is 9 points behind the top 3. That is a gap that is almost impossible to bridge when the season only has 6 rounds left. From the position of reigning champion, the Nam city team is facing the risk of ending empty-handed on the V-League stage.

What is more worrying lies in their attacking approach. Xuân Son has only 3 goals after 10 matches, a number not commensurate with the expectations placed on a main striker. The contrast is even clearer when he explodes in cup competitions.

This shows that Nam Dinh's attacking system lacks diversity. When Xuân Son is tightly locked down, the team almost has no sufficiently effective alternative plan.

This draw therefore is not just a stumble, but also a warning. If they do not improve their ability to utilize opportunities and reduce dependence on one individual, Nam Dinh will struggle to make a breakthrough in the final stretch.