Thailand team is very strong
After two 10-0 victories over Timor Leste and 1-0 over Malaysia, the Thai team continued to show their class in their away match against Singapore. It is undeniable that the "War Elephants" were somewhat overwhelmed by the two long-range goals of Shawal Anuar and Faris Ramli from the home team after only 30 minutes of the match, but from here, the defending champion's mettle was demonstrated.
A steady fighting spirit can be seen in the coherent play of the Thai team. They calmly deploy the ball, observe, move before creating through balls or passing the line behind the Singapore defenders. In addition to a series of smart runs from Suphanat Mueanta, Patrik Gustavsson or Weerathep Pomphan, Thailand also proved themselves to be the team with the best passing ability in Southeast Asia. The passes from Anan Yodsangwal or Suphanan Bureerat always create ideal landing spots, opening up opportunities for teammates to face the Singapore goalkeeper.
Thailand's 4 goals all had the same scenario as above. This shows the quality of the playing style, individual skills and competitive spirit of the Golden Temple team. The 4-2 victory over Singapore also helped Thailand secure an early ticket to the ASEAN Cup semi-finals as the top team in Group A. Thanks to that, coach Masatada Ishii and his team have more time to prepare their forces and tactics for the 2 semi-final matches.
Calculation of Vietnam team
Thailand has an early ticket to the semi-finals but has not yet determined its opponent. Meanwhile, this is the advantage that Vietnam holds. After 2 victories against Laos and Indonesia, coach Kim Sang-sik's team has opened the door to the semi-finals. The concern now is whether Vietnam will finish first or second in Group B, from which it may or may not meet Thailand in the knockout round.
In Group B, right after 2 victories against Laos and Indonesia, the Vietnam team has many opportunities to take the lead. Considering the objective factor from the tight match schedule when meeting the Philippines (round 4) and Myanmar (round 5) in just 4 days (including travel), the Vietnam team's coaching staff does not want to make things difficult for themselves. Right at the airport before going to the Philippines (November 16), Mr. Kim Sang-sik and his colleagues quickly discussed the plan and goals of the Vietnam team for the next match.
After the match with the Philippines on the evening of December 18, the Vietnam team will have to make careful calculations before facing Myanmar in the final match of the group stage. Coach Kim Sang-sik and his team will play at home and have the right to decide for themselves. At this time, the question of first or second place in the group will be raised again.
From an objective perspective, finishing first in Group B will help the Vietnamese team avoid facing Thailand in the semi-finals. It should be remembered that in the history of 29 confrontations from 1995 to the present, Vietnam has only won Thailand exactly 3 times. The remaining matches, the team drew 8 matches and lost 18 matches. Since September 2019 until now, the "Golden Star Warriors" have not defeated this opponent once.
Most recently, in September 2024, coach Ishii helped Thailand reverse the situation against Vietnam right at My Dinh. In addition, within the framework of the ASEAN Cup (formerly the AFF Cup), the Vietnamese team only won against Thailand twice, in 1998 and 2008. In the remaining 11 meetings, the team drew 4 matches and lost 7 matches against the regional "rivals".
The above data shows that if Vietnam avoids Thailand, it will open up many advantages. The goal of coach Kim Sang-sik and his team is to reach the final of the tournament and not meeting a "dirty" opponent like Thailand in the semi-finals is also appropriate. Besides, winning the top spot in Group B will create a mental boost for the players as well as regain the trust of home fans.
