Coach Le Thuy Hai.

The Cong, or the Army team, has never won the National Cup, although they appeared in the tournament twice in 1992 and 2004. They had a poor V-League performance this year, finishing ninth out of 14.

Hai, 63, who replaced Vuong Tien Dung after 12 games this season, just saved the Army team from relegation with a 4-2 win over Da Nang in the last game on Sunday.

Although the Army team recruited Brazilian trio Vanderlei Lima, Gilson Da Silva and De Olivera, the team still lacked offensive line mojo.

Meanwhile, Da Nang will give their all to win their second title this year – having already won the top V-League prize – for the first time in the team’s history.

A big cash-prize, estimated at VND9 billion (US$500,000) sponsored by the city People’s Committee and the Viet Nam Football Federation is another temptation for the city to win today’s final.

Coach Le Huynh Duc will play his best lineup, including top scorer Merlo Gaston from Argentina, new Vietnamese citizen Rogerio Pereira and top form Brazilians Rafael Marquez and Molina Eduardo. Young players Huynh Quoc Anh, Chau Le Phuoc Vinh, Phan Thanh Phuc, and Pham Nguyen Sa will join them in setting up strong offensive play.

The central coast city, who won the premiership in 1992 and the National Cup in 1993, has been training in Ha Noi since last Sunday in preparation of taking home the Cup and its VND250,000 million ($14,700) in prize money.

VietNamNet/VNS