Bắc giang
Vietnam ready to avenge 2022 title loss against Thailand
Vietnam and Thailand have made it through to the final match of the 2024 ASEAN Championship (ASEAN Cup 2024), setting up a re-run of the 2022 title decider between the two sides, which Thailand won 3-2 overall to secure the crown.
Nguyen Xuan Son scored a brace and Nguyen Tien Linh converted a late penalty as the Vietnamese team thrashed Singapore 3-1 on December 29 to advance with a 5-1 aggregate victory in the semifinals.
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Vietnam’s naturalised forward Nguyen Xuan Son (#12) currently leads the 2024 ASEAN Cup’s top scorer race with five goals. |
Meanwhile, Suphanat Mueanta's extra-time header earned Thailand a 3-1 win over the Philippines the following day to register a 4-3 aggregate triumph.
Vietnam facing Thailand is considered the “dream final” of the 2024 ASEAN Cup. Historically, the Vietnamese national team have often fallen short against their Thai counterparts.
According to statistics, the two teams have clashed 29 times, with Vietnam securing 3 wins, 8 draws, and suffering 18 losses.
This will be the third time thus far Vietnam and Thailand have faced each other in the final game of the ASEAN Cup (previously known as Tiger Cup, AFF Cup).
Vietnam emerged as the overall 3-2 winners in 2008, but lost 2-3 on aggregate as the two sides met again in 2022.
In their latest meeting, during the FIFA Days 2024 (September), Thailand clinched a narrow 2-1 win at My Dinh Stadium thanks to first-half attempts by Suphanat Mueanta and Patrik Gustavsson, with Nguyen Tien Linh having scored Vietnam’s consolation goal.
Regarding the ASEAN Championship, Thailand currently lead the tournament’s all-time rankings with seven titles, followed by Singapore with four, Vietnam with two and Malaysia with one. Meanwhile, Indonesia hold the unfortunate title of “runner-up king” having finished as runners-up 6 times.
Despite their unfavorable head-to-head results against Thailand, Vietnam are expected to avenge their 2022 title loss to the War Elephants, given their impressive showing since the beginning of the tournament and the “fresh breeze” brought by forward Nguyen Xuan Son.
The presence of the naturalised player has added strength to Vietnam’s attacking line, making it a big threat to any opponents in the tournament.
Xuan Son has netted five goals after three matches and are now at the forefront of the top scorer race, closely chased by Suphanat Mueanta and Patrik Gustavsson of Thailand and teammate Tien Linh with four goals each.
It is highly expected that he will retain such stellar form to help the Golden Star Warriors to address the Thailand challenge to lift the ASEAN Championship trophy for the third time.
The first leg of the ASEAN Cup 2024 final is scheduled to take place at Viet Tri Stadium (Phu Tho province, Vietnam) at 8pm on January 2, and the return leg at Rajamangala Stadium (Bangkok, Thailand) the following three days.
Predicted starting XI:
Vietnam: Dinh Trieu, Tien Dung, Duy Manh, Thanh Chung, Xuan Manh, Van Vi, Quang Hai, Hoang Duc, Hai Long, Tien Linh, Xuan Son
Thailand: Khammai, Hemviboon, Mickelson, Bureerat, Aukkee, Sarachat, Chamrasamee, Davis, Pomphun, Ratree, Gustavsson.
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