On the night of January 16, 2023, the final of the Southeast Asian Championship drew to a close. In the second round of the fierce battle, Thailand narrowly beat Vietnam 1-0 to win the title with a total score of 3-2. For Vietnam, this is not only a painful loss, but also symbolizes the end of the "golden generation" in 2018. Thailand's strong performance throughout the game, both offense and defense, its performance is far better than our soccer team. This battle also signals that our soccer team will face another strong opponent on the road to the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.
Looking back at the first leg of the match, the two sides shook hands with a 2-2 scoreline. In fact, Vietnam was lucky that the crucial goal came in the 88th minute. Although Thailand had less than a third of Vietnam's shots on goal in the second round (6 vs. 18), Vietnam was slightly better in terms of attacking statistics. The match naturally sparked and the atmosphere in the stadium became more electric as a result. Vietnam and Thailand, with their strong fan bases, never lack passion.
With this win, Thailand has won the Southeast Asian Championship for the seventh time. Vietnam, on the other hand, set two embarrassing records: two consecutive finals were lost to Thailand, the semifinals and today's final; since 2018, six consecutive games against Thailand failed to win. With the end of the "golden generation", the direction of the Vietnamese team has become the focus. It is reported that the Vietnamese team has preferred to let Troussier coach the national team, the team reorganization is imminent. Lunar New Year is approaching, the Vietnamese team lost the title, the fans are inevitably disheartened. It is worth mentioning that in Vietnam, this year is not the year of the rabbit, but the year of the cat, quite interesting.
Whether our men's soccer team can beat Thailand in the Southeast Asian Championship will undoubtedly become a hot topic. If we participate in the tournament, we will be among the champions, but it is still unknown whether we can beat Thailand. Anyway, judging from Thailand's performance, it is a sure thing that they will qualify for the top 20 of the World Cup Qualifiers. I am also looking forward to playing against Thailand.
