According to Thairath newspaper, the Thai team received good news about their squad for the first leg of the 2024 ASEAN Cup final. Accordingly, striker Suphanat Mueanta has fully recovered his fitness and is ready to play from the start against the Vietnamese team.
Suphanat had a high fever earlier, which prevented him from starting in the second leg of the semi-final against the Philippines. After coming on late in the match, Suphanat scored in extra time to help Thailand beat the Philippines 3-1 (4-3 on aggregate) to reach the final.
Suphanat is the best attacking player of the Thai team at the ASEAN Cup 2024 with 4 goals and 4 assists. In total, through 6 matches, this striker has had 14 shots, 7 of which were on target, in addition to 16 passes to create breakthroughs for teammates.
Suphanat's fitness and readiness to start is very good news for the Thai team. This player who played in Belgium has good technique, is agile, has wide movements and has a variety of finishing. He also scored 1 goal to help the Thai team beat the Vietnamese team 2-1, in a friendly match at My Dinh Stadium in September 2024.
In addition to Suphanat, the Thai team is also likely to have the return of attacking midfielder Ekanit Panya. The player currently playing for Ehime FC in Japan has not played since the start of the 2024 ASEAN Cup, but he has absorbed the entire training plan in the training session before the first leg final match against Vietnam.
Ekanit is an attacking midfielder with sharp technique and tactical vision. He is a member of the Thai team that won the ASEAN Cup 2022, King's Cup 2024 and is no stranger to the Vietnamese team. His presence will help coach Masatada Ishii have more personnel options to play against the Vietnamese team.
On the other hand, Thailand will not have the service of striker Teerasak Poeiphimai. This player was injured in the recent match against the Philippines. MRI results show that Teerasak will have to rest for 6-8 weeks, which means he will miss both final matches against Vietnam. Since the beginning of the tournament, Teerasak has scored 3 goals at the ASEAN Cup 2024.
The first leg of the 2024 ASEAN Cup final will take place at 8:00 p.m. today (January 2), broadcast live on VTV2, VTV Can Tho and FPT Play.