Thailand is rated higher
The encounter between the Singapore and Thailand teams is key to qualifying for the next round. The team that wins will soon hold a ticket to the 2024 AFF Cup semi-finals without caring about the results of the final match. Currently, the two teams have 6 points after 2 matches, but the “war elephants” are temporarily ranked first in Group A because they are ahead of Singapore (second in the group) in terms of goal difference (+11 compared to +4).
Thailand will become the first team to enter the AFF Cup 2024 semi-finals if they win against Singapore
Before the match, the Thai team was rated higher than their opponents in all aspects and will likely soon win tickets to the semi-finals as first place in Group A. “War Elephants” owns many quality players. However, the lack of experienced names like Chanathip Songkrasin, Theerathon Bunmathan or veteran striker Teerasil Dangda caused the Golden Temple team to have problems in their gameplay when they fell into a difficult situation. The striker who is considered the prodigy of Thai football Suphanat Mueanta or the Swedish striker Patrik Gustavvson can lead his teammates to play sublimely and win with a very strong score of 10-0 against Timor Leste. , but when faced with “older” Malaysia, they revealed many limitations and played somewhat deadlocked. “War Elephants” could only defeat Malaysia 1-0 at home thanks to a lucky situation, when the opposing goalkeeper made a mistake.
The Thai team’s attacking ability promises to be significantly improved in the match against Singapore, when Supachok Sarachat may return. The midfielder playing for Consadole Sapporo Club (J-League 1, Japan) joined forces before the match against Malaysia, but is not physically fit to play immediately. The class and experience of a player playing in Asia’s leading football platform will help the “war elephant”‘s playing style become more diverse, while also increasing the variability in his plays.
On the contrary, the Singapore team has the biggest support in playing at home, with a capacity of about 55,000 spectators. The Lion Island football team is in an excited mood after 2 wins and is also determined to achieve good results to determine their own fate. If they play closely and have a reasonable approach, the Singapore team can absolutely make things happen. The competition between these two teams promises to be very intense.
The other match on the same day is between Cambodia and Timor Lester at 5:45 p.m., at Phnom Penh Olympic Stadium. After 2 matches (1 draw, 1 loss), the pagoda team is currently ranked 4th in Group B with 1 point. In theory, Cambodia still has a way forward. Therefore, coach Koji Gyotoku’s team will definitely do their best to win 3 points, raising hopes of reaching the semi-finals of AFF Cup 2024. However, before thinking about victory, the Cambodian team needs to have a plan to solve the problem. The speedy and very dangerous player on Timor Leste’s side is Joao Pedro. This player once tormented Malaysia’s defense in the match on December 11, contributing 1 assist and 1 goal from impressive sprints climbing the edge.
