Van Son's Elbow and the Lesson V-League Has Not Learned

Minute 15 at Hang Day Stadium on the evening of September 20 stopped for one breath. Van Son's elbow hit Dinh Bac in the face. Referee Le Vu Linh immediately showed a red card, and the stadium stood still for several seconds. I have watched football for more than 50 years, but I have never grown used to the ache of seeing a young player brought down by an act that sits outside the rules.

The V-League round 3 match between Cong An Ha Noi and Dong Nai ended 3-0. The home side took three points and played a man up from very early. The story of the game, however, was in the fouls intended to hurt. After Van Son's elbow, Dinh Bac also received a yellow card for his heated reaction. On the Vietnam Football Fans Forum, supporters first discussed the score, then quickly moved to how V-League treats hotheads.

The defining moment came in the second half. Dinh Bac held the ball, Tan Sinh pressed, and the experienced Dong Nai defender repeatedly kicked the legs of the Cong An Ha Noi attacker. Referee Le Vu Linh pulled the match back with only a yellow card. Many fans considered the punishment too light. I understand their frustration. A tackle from behind can end a career. A disciplinary system that waits for footage to go viral is already too late. Football has no place for deliberate attacks.

Dong Nai entered the match with a deep defensive block and few attacking choices. Once they went down to ten men, they had to drop even deeper, but their defending produced an alarming image. A team can lose because the opponent is better. A collective loses its image when tempers walk onto the pitch.

I have watched the fiercest derbies in Europe, matches full of whistles and cards. There can be arguments, there can be collisions, but the final line is player safety. When a player uses his foot as a weapon, he places himself outside the game. Based on my experience watching matches, the more a referee hesitates, the more players risk. The yellow card for Tan Sinh therefore became a dangerous signal.

For Tan Sinh, supporters felt an extra pain. He played at the U20 World Cup with Vietnam's U20 team, won SEA Games gold with the U23 side, and spent more than 10 years in V-League. He has lived through enough seasons to know how to handle pressure. He was once a pride of his generation. That is why his repeated kicks at Dinh Bac on the evening of September 20 damaged his image. A member of the Vietnam Football Fans Forum wrote that he should have controlled himself to build a better career. I read in that sentence a love of football that still wants to see its heroes walk with dignity.

Vietnamese football has known proud days. Tan Sinh's generation carried the U20 World Cup dream; the next generation conquered SEA Games. But a big dream needs discipline. A strong national team is built from cleaner domestic matches, from referees willing to blow the whistle at the right time, and from players who understand that a career is more fragile than one kick.

Many people on the forum said deliberate attacks must be removed from football. Some targeted the referee team, arguing Tan Sinh should have received a red card. Others mentioned the upcoming FIFA ASEAN Cup, worried because Vietnam has already lost many players to injury. That worry did not surprise me. When V-League produces too many moments like this, supporters lose trust.

One fan wrote that violence has existed in V-League for years and still has not been fixed. I share that feeling. Those challenges remain in the memory of older generations, and now a new layer has been added. The difference is that every season we promise to act firmly, yet the next season shows us the same old image. A few weeks ago, Van Hau was suspended for four matches and fined 20 million VND for a violent foul on Doan Ngoc Tan. The punishment carried a clear message: player safety matters. But on September 20, Van Son and Tan Sinh showed that the punishment was not enough to cool down hotheads. I do not want to think V-League needs a serious injury to change.

Some fans asked the disciplinary committee to review the footage of Tan Sinh's challenge. I consider that necessary. A kick from behind, even when punished with a yellow card, should be seen by the camera. World football is full of post-match sanctions. Justice that arrives late is still better than justice that never arrives.

Dinh Bac also received advice. His showboating style and willingness to provoke opponents make him a target. I have watched many artists on the pitch deal with the same pressure. Defenders always try to challenge them hard. The difference lies in how referees protect players who rely on technique. If Dinh Bac wants a long career, he must learn to manage his emotions. Referees also need to learn the line between strong challenges and destructive fouls.

One supporter asked where the spirit of fair play was in such moments. I think that spirit was in Cong An Ha Noi's penalty area, where they chose to finish with the ball instead of retaliating with their feet. They could have been angry after Dinh Bac was attacked, but they stayed focused. That is also a lesson for Dong Nai. If Vietnamese football allows violent challenges to continue, the league's image will struggle to grow.

I remember the 2026 World Cup, the nights spent in the studio with Voice of Vietnam. My voice rose from the Russian crowd, and history agreed to listen. That history was built from beautiful matches, from young players who accepted falls and stood up again. Football gives us a moment, then takes a whole lifetime to regret. Van Son and Tan Sinh still have careers ahead of them. They can choose to leave other values behind. Supporters change their shirts through the years, but their chant remains the same. They sing for players who play beautifully, and they turn away from those who only know how to destroy.

Hang Day Stadium was not empty that night, but I still heard the stands cry with memory. The cry of people who have waited too long for cleaner football. I have seen a city finish second in silence. The pain turned into alluvium for the next season. For players, a defeat can teach a lesson. But violent challenges leave only scars. My memory is stained with the colour of grass, and that colour does not fade with time. I choose to believe Vietnamese football can shake off these dark corners.

Shaking them off requires more than one punishment. It requires consistency from referees, strength from the disciplinary board, and maturity from the players themselves. The FIFA ASEAN Cup is coming quickly. Before they put on the national shirt, they need to know that a stamp today can make a dream bleed tomorrow. V-League holds a long season in its hands, and every round is another chance to show that the game can grow from painful lessons.