On the evening of November 17, the Thai team had a 1-1 draw with the Lao team in a friendly match before the 2024 ASEAN Cup (formerly known as the AFF Cup).
Despite using a squad consisting of many young players and missing many key players, the Thai team is still rated much higher than the Lao team. However, the team nicknamed "War Elephants" encountered many difficulties and played deadlocked against Laos.
It was not until the 60th minute that Thailand opened the scoring through Seksan Ratree after a Teerasak Poeiphimai assist. However, just nine minutes later, Laos captain Boonprachan Boonkong equalized with a beautiful long-range shot. Thailand's subsequent attacking efforts could not help them win and the match ended in a 1-1 draw.
This result disappointed Thai football fans. Many fans even heavily criticized the performance of coach Masatada Ishii and his team.
"Laos has developed a lot, but Thailand is still standing still. The players play as if they are stuck and they have almost no desire," said fan Nittipong Nawong.
"Now we are tied with Laos, in the future we may lose to teams weaker than Laos if we don't change. The players only play for salary, not for the flag," commented Chawong Khunjan.
Many Thai fans are also concerned about the ability to defend the ASEAN Cup championship when the team only drew both friendly matches in November (0-0 with Lebanon and 1-1 with Laos).
