Laos will begin their journey at ASEAN Cup 2026 by hosting Thailand. Despite having home advantage, coach Grujic's team is still underestimated as the gap in level and ranking between the two teams is quite large.
The Lao team has some faces playing abroad such as Phayak Siphanom (Chainat Hornbill) or Bounphachan Bounkong, a player who used to be in the ASEAN All Stars team playing against Manchester United.
However, Laos has never passed the group stage after 14 participations in the Southeast Asian Championship. At the most recent ASEAN Cup, they only won 2 points after 4 matches and stopped early.
Meanwhile, Thailand entered the tournament at 94th place in the FIFA rankings, the highest in the region. Under the guidance of coach Anthony Hudson, the "War Elephants" still maintain an unbeaten record with 3 wins and 2 draws. The two most recent tests against Kuwait and China also helped this team improve their playing style before entering the tournament.
Although not fully recruiting stars, Thailand still possesses many experienced players. Manuel Tom Bihr is likely to command the defense, Sarach Yooyen plays a regulating role in midfield, and Teerasak Pueypimai is expected to lead the attack.
The match between Laos and Thailand takes place at 8:00 PM today (July 25th) and is broadcast live on FPT Play.
Live stream link:
//fptplay. vn/su-kien/lao-thai-lan-6a5dfe91ba5e9814685926f3? event=event&type=highlight
