Laos and Timor Leste teams continuously cause surprises
No one thought that Timor Leste, who lost 0-10 to Thailand in the first round, would play bravely when meeting Malaysia just 3 days later. Nor did anyone believe that the Laos team would change so dramatically between the two matches, only 72 hours apart. From losing 1-4 to Vietnam at home, the team from the land of a million elephants held the Indonesian team to a 3-3 draw at the opponent's "fortress". Such turning points, like "twists on the screen", happened after only the first 2 matches of the Southeast Asian Football Championship.
Experts and the media were surprised by the way Laos and Timor Leste made things difficult for the big teams. Remember, before scoring 2 goals and leading Malaysia at one point, Timor Leste had only done the same thing once in their 4 tournament appearances. Meanwhile, the young Laos team under coach Ha Hyeok-jun made it impossible for fans to predict their ups and downs.
In previous friendly matches, they could have easily lost to Malaysia with a score of 1-3. However, just a few days later, the young players of Laos forced Thailand - the reigning Southeast Asian champions - to accept a draw. A similar story happened at the ASEAN Cup 2024, they lost 1-4 to Vietnam at home but played extremely well, making Indonesia draw as if they had lost.
It should be emphasized that the Lao team has just returned to the international circuit after 1 year of inactivity. The core force of this team has just played the first 3 rounds of the national championship after 13 months of "sitting and eating". Another compliment for Laos, because this is the first time in the history of the ASEAN Cup, they have scored so many goals against the Indonesian team. It also took Laos nearly 2 years to score 3 goals in an official match of the tournament.
Malaysia, Indonesia ups and downs
Malaysia and Indonesia are currently the two leading teams in Group A and B at the ASEAN Cup 2024. But paradoxically, they are being heavily criticized by fans. Even with 4 points after 2 rounds, both Malaysia and Indonesia are still doubtful about their ability to enter the semi-finals, let alone compete for the championship with Thailand and Vietnam.
Looking at the first two rounds, many people were surprised by the way these two teams struggled to gain points. Malaysia drew with Cambodia in the opening match in a situation where they had to chase the score with a weaker opponent. In the second match, despite playing at home, Malaysia only won 3-2 against Timor Leste, who were considered the "underdogs" of the tournament.
The Indonesian team is no exception. Changing more than 80% of the squad compared to the squad that fought in the third qualifying round of the 2026 World Cup has caused the team from the archipelago to play with a lack of vitality in the 2024 ASEAN Cup. In the first round against underdog Myanmar, Indonesia only had a minimal victory after an own goal by Zin Nyi Nyi Aung. Three days later, the "Garuda" played even worse at home when they were constantly caught in a score chase with Laos. In the end, they shared points after a 3-3 draw, and also lost the service of mainstay Marselino Ferdinan due to a red card (2 yellow cards).
In addition to the contrasting picture between Indonesia and Malaysia and the duo of Timor Leste and Laos, the 2024 ASEAN Cup is also witnessing the interesting and unpredictable performances from Singapore and Cambodia. Before entering the tournament, the Singapore team was underestimated due to the lack of breakthroughs in preparation. However, they won 2-1 against ambitious Cambodia with a series of naturalized players from Japan. No one could have imagined how the "Angkor Warriors" lost to Singapore, when their goalkeeper made consecutive mistakes within just 5 minutes, leading to 2 quick goals.
The surprises from mid-level teams and the stumbles of strong teams - are also a warning for the Vietnam team. The 4-1 victory over Laos on the opening day still shows many flaws in the expertise of coach Kim Sang-sik and his team. If they are subjective, the Vietnam team can completely fall into the situation that Indonesia and Malaysia have encountered.
