Aspiration from both sides
In the SEA Games men's football event, it is usually necessary to have at least 4 matches in the final and 5 matches to win the championship, however, this year is "more unusual" than many previous editions, because the 2 teams won tickets to the final after only 3 matches (2 in the group stage, 1 in the semi-finals). U22 Vietnam and U22 Thailand have an appointment at Rajamangala Stadium tonight (December 18), as experts say, is a "dream final". And the dream will become even more wonderful if coach Kim Sang-sik and his team bring the Gold Medal to Vietnam, leaving the Thais with a long disappointment.
On the football map of Southeast Asia, although Indonesia is rising strongly, Vietnam and Thailand are considered a "classical" match. However, it is worth mentioning that since men's football at the SEA Games gave the field to young players (U23 since 2001, U22 since 2017), this is the fourth time the two football regions have met in the final. The previous 3 times, Thailand won 2, Vietnam won 1.
In fact, Thailand still shows a certain superiority over the rest when their youth teams have won the SEA Games 7 times. But it is also very noteworthy that the last time Thailand U22 won the championship was 8 years ago. During that time, U22 Vietnam won twice and U22 Indonesia won the most recent SEA Games championship (U22 Thailand reached the finals 2 out of those 3 times).
Speaking about the context, it can be seen that U22 Thailand has great ambitions for the conference championship at home. The desire to win 4 Gold Medals in football events has been eliminated (The women's team and the women's futsal team both failed in the semi-finals). However, U22 Vietnam is also very ready to crash the opponent's party.
It can be said that U22 Vietnam and U22 Thailand have gone through a similar journey in terms of physical strength - both starting on December 3, having 8 days off to play the next match and playing the semi-final on December 15. Playing early and late within a few hours is insignificant. There is only a slight difference in the psychology in the group stage, when U22 Thailand solves their task more easily.
Advantages and notes
However, it is also because of overcoming some difficult times that U22 Vietnam is confident, enough for coach Kim Sang-sik to declare "ready to win Gold". Dinh Bac and his teammates were put under pressure to "ving" (to be sure) when meeting U22 Malaysia in the group stage, then the pressure when facing U22 Philippines who had not conceded a goal and were also the team that won the U22 Indonesia, turning this team into a former champion. Therefore, with many factors that have been and are growing strongly in the V.League in recent times, U22 Vietnam is not afraid of U22 Thailand, in the midst of Rajamangala's stage covered by tens of thousands of home fans.
The 33rd SEA Games final between U22 Vietnam and U22 Thailand will take place at 7:30 p.m. on December 18. Live on FPT Play.
Coach Kim Sang-sik expressed confidence in the ability of U22 Vietnam to win the Gold Medal. He said: U22 Thailand has players who have scored in many different ways in this tournament. Therefore, defenders, including Pham Ly Duc, need to play disciplined and solidly.
The final match is very important, but we also participate in the U23 Asian Cup Finals in January. The most important thing is that the players of both teams are protected and not injured. I hope the referees will operate fairly so that the match can be fair and complete.
I really hope the U22 players can also win the championship at this stadium, to end a meaningful 2025 - he said.
