The Vietnamese team teaches the Thai team a lesson in sportsmanship at Rajamangala

The ugly face of the Thai team

In the 64th minute, Supachok Sarachat suddenly scored to increase the score to 2-1 for the Thai team with a shot from outside the penalty area in the shock of the Vietnamese team and many fans present at Rajamangala Stadium, because before that Dinh Trieu took the initiative to throw the ball out of bounds when Hoang Duc was hurt.

The referee, after discussing with both coaching staff, accepted this goal. But just as Supachok and the Thai players tried to find reasons for themselves, the awkwardness in the fans’ celebration said the opposite.

The cheers at Rajamangala after that goal were no longer as loud as before!

Thailand is the king of Southeast Asia with 2 consecutive AFF Cup championships, along with a record of 7 crowns. But on the night of January 5, that great pride was hurt when coach Masatada Ishii’s students chose to go against the spirit of beautiful football.

Not only was the goal considered “stolen” by Southeast Asian fans, the Thai players also showed their ugly faces with a series of fouls and tricks to annoy the Vietnamese players. Male. Weerathep Pomphan’s red card is the typical image of the Thai team’s bad playing style.

Giving up their strong point of playing technical football made the Thai team pay the price of no longer being themselves. When Tuan Hai scored the 2-2 equalizer, one could clearly feel that the “War Elephant” players were demoralized.

Vietnam team: Deserved championship!

Thailand’s confidence was seriously dented not only because of Pansa Hemviboon’s own goal but also because the seed of “fear” had sprouted before, in front of the Vietnamese team under countless pressures. Maximum concentration for playing football.

Right from the beginning of the match, contrary to many predictions, coach Kim Sang-sik arranged the team to actively push forward and play a fair attack against the home team Thailand.

That fearless spirit helped the Vietnamese team score a 1-0 lead thanks to Tuan Hai, who came to the 2024 AFF Cup with his legs not yet fully recovered from injury, and was kept in check for the entire tournament before suddenly starting in the tournament. Final return match and become a hero.

Even in the most difficult moments, when witnessing Thailand despite everything to get 2 goals, including the lack of fair play and solid kicking… the Vietnamese players were still alert so as not to get carried away. Don’t retaliate but concentrate on playing football.

Especially after Supachok’s goal, the Vietnamese players reacted in such a wonderful way. The boys in red surprised Thailand. They did not have the bitter attitude of retaliation as the Thai people expected, but instead had a strong spirit of not giving up.

After the match, defender Ben Davis – the best player on the Thai side reluctantly used the word “unlucky” to talk about the home team’s defeat. But perhaps he himself also understood that “War Elephants” had a complete failure in front of the home audience.

This is not the first time Thailand lost to the Vietnamese team in Rajamangala, but it will certainly be their most memorable defeat, when the “War Elephants” lost themselves in the eyes of Southeast Asian fans, before learning the lesson. Sports spirit from Vietnamese players.