Thailand team
Thailand is still the highest ranked team in Southeast Asia. At the AFF Cup, they are the defending champions and have won the tournament a total of 7 times.
Entering the AFF Cup 2024, the "War Elephants" are still considered the number 1 candidate for the championship thanks to their balanced force, good combination between generations of players, as well as a clear identity in their playing style.
The Thai team will not have the presence of veteran stars like Chanathip, Teerasil Dangda or Bunmathan... but their remaining force is still very formidable with Peeradol Chamratsamee, Weerathep Pomphan, Supachok Sarachart, Ekanit Panya...
Malaysia Team
Malaysia has always been one of the strongest teams in Southeast Asia, winning the AFF Cup in 2010. However, over the past year, they have declined quite a bit as key players have lost their form and the next generation does not have much talent.
Besides, they also face non-professional problems, such as parting ways with coach Kim Pan-gon, star player being attacked with acid... Currently, the Malaysian team is still using interim coach Pau Marti Vicente.
In the last 5 matches, Malaysia won 3, drew 1 and lost 1. They are the strongest candidate to compete for the remaining ticket of Group A to the semi-finals after Thailand.
Waiting for surprise from Cambodia team
The Cambodian team has never advanced past the group stage of the AFF Cup, so they are eager to make history in this year's tournament. To realize this ambition, the Football Federation of Cambodia (FFC) has naturalized 6 players of Japanese, Colombian, Ivorian origin... and put them on the list for the AFF Cup 2024.
However, three players, including Japanese defender Ose Takaki, Colombian striker Neto Rondon, of Phnom Penh Crown club, along with Ivorian striker Abdel Kader Coulibaly of ISI Dangkor Senchey, have not yet been recognized by FIFA as eligible to play for the Cambodian national team.
FFC has submitted all the necessary paperwork to FIFA and is awaiting a final response. If Cambodia can field six new naturalized players, they promise to produce memorable performances at the 2024 AFF Cup.
For Singapore, their decline has lasted for more than a decade. Since their last AFF Cup win in 2012, Singapore has only reached the semi-finals once in subsequent tournaments.
This year, the Singapore team will not have the presence of its biggest stars such as the Fandi brothers, Safuwan Baharudin, Jacob Mahler, Song Ui-young... With the remaining force, the Singapore team will find it very difficult to make a difference at the AFF Cup 2024.
Meanwhile, Timor-Leste is considered the weakest team in the tournament. They do not have a good foundation compared to their opponents, even having to rent Vietnam's stadium as their home ground. For them, winning 1 victory at the AFF Cup 2024 is also a great success.
