Striker Nguyen Quang Hai (C) of Khanh Hoa celebrates with his team-mates after scoring the opener in Sunday’s clash against Dong Thap at Nha Trang Stadium, propelling his club to the top of V- League after four rounds

Khatoco Khanh Hoa beat current leaders Dong Thap 2-0 to replace them on top of the V-League after four rounds, while title contender Hoang Anh Gia Lai (HAGL) defeated Hai Phong 3-2 to jump five places up from the bottom.

The visitors played tough and kept the match scoreless in the first half, but excellent performances by home team striker Nguyen Quang Hai gave Khanh Hoa the edge.

Hai scored the opener one minute into the second half and 18 minutes later, his teammate Jonathan doubled the score for the home team.

In the Central Highlands town of Pleiku, the 2003-2004 champs HAGL were in a difficult situation 15 minutes into the match when Leandro struck to put the visitors in the lead.

The home team felt relieved when Thai midfielder Dasakorn Thonglao evened the score with a bicycle kick from close range.

HAGL fans got their money’s worth when the most expensive V-League player, American expat Lee Nguyen, put them in the lead.

Nguyen was so happy with his first goal in the V-League that he took off his shirt to celebrate the goal. The action got him his second yellow card and he was sent off in the 60th minute.

Visitors Hai Phong capitalized on the advantage of having an extra player to make it 2-2 twelve minutes later.

Lee Nguyen would have regretted his celebration had Brazilian striker Evaldo Goncalves not scored in the last second of the injury time of the second half.

It was a hard-fought match for both teams with 10 yellow cards and one red card handed out.

Two other strong clubs, Da Nang and T&T Hanoi, had a hard time at home. Almost 15,000 fans came to the Chi Lang Stadium expecting a Da Nang victory, but the tough defense of visitors HCMC Club could not be breached. Da Nang’s Merlio failed to defeat the visitor’s goalkeeper in a one-on-one situation. Defender Vo Hoang Quang saved the team’s blushes toward the end with the sole goal of the match.

At Hang Day Stadium, T&T Hanoi also defeated Thanh Hoa by the same margin after a tough tussle, scoring with just four minutes to go in the second half. With the win, T&T Hanoi moved up to second place from fifth.

Nam Dinh and 2005-2006 champions Dong Tam Long An fought hard for a 1- 1 draw at the Thien Truong Stadium while the country’s major youth training center, Song Lam Nghe An held the mighty The Cong to a similar score at Vinh Stadium.

Defending champions Binh Duong suffered a 1-2 home loss to the Fourth Military Zone in an early match of the fourth round on Saturday. It was their third defeat in four rounds, and they are near the bottom of the table at 12th position out of 14.

Reported by Thanh Nien staff