Indonesia, Thailand dispute 2021 Suzuki Cup crown

MANILA, Philippines – After 24 matches among 10 countries, the 2021 AFF Suzuki Cup is coming down to the final two matches between Thailand and Indonesia.

And rightly so. Both countries topped their respective groups — Thailand in Group A and Indonesia in Group B, each unbeaten although the latter took a scoreless draw with now former champions Vietnam.

It is also a repeat of the 2016 AFF Suzuki Cup Finals where Thailand won, 3-2, on aggregate. 

Thailand blanked Vietnam, the tournament pre-favorites, 2-nil across two legs while Indonesia advanced, 5-3, on aggregate against a tough and hard-luck Singapore side.

The Merah Putih and the War Elephants will face off this coming December 29 in the first leg and on January 1, 2022, for the second leg at Kallang National Stadium in Singapore. The AFF Suzuki Cup Finals will be aired on local television via Premier Football on Skycable and Cignal as well as the Tap Go streaming application. 

Thailand was impressive in ousting Vietnam. They were also lucky.

In the first leg, a four-pass sequence on the quick counter saw forward Teerasil Dangda fight for the ball deep in his own half. He found Supachok Sarachat, who quickly played Thanawat Suengchittawon on the diagonal. Except Suengchittawon’s forward pass to a streaking Chanathip Songrasin was wanting in accuracy as it looked like Vietnamese central back Nguyen Phong Hong Duy would easily intercept the ball. Except the Vietnamese defender slipped allowing Chanathip to latch on to the ball. Goalkeeper Tran Nguyen Manh rushed out and was nearly successful in blocking the ball except it continued rolling into the net for Thailand’s first goal. 

The second goal was just as impressive as they carved out Vietnam’s compact defense with another nifty seven-pass sequence that saw Chanathip go one-on-one with Tran Nguyen Manh for a goal.

For the second leg, Thailand played stonewall defense that allowed Vietnam only four shots on goal in a scoreless affair.

As for Indonesia, they drew 1-1 with Singapore in the first leg then figured in perhaps the most dramatic and unpredictable match in Suzuki Cup history when the Lions went down to eight men after three red cards but nearly sent the former out of the tournament. An early goal in extra periods put the fight out of Singapore as the Merah Putih claimed their finals spot.

In head-to-head match-ups in the Suzuki Cup, Thailand has the 9-0-3 advantage over Indonesia although their most recent match was a 2-2 draw in a World Cup Qualifier match that was played in Dubai. 

Overall as well, Thailand has a 39-14-25 record against Indonesia. 

In this 2021 tournament, Indonesia scored 13 goals but conceded four. In contrast, Thailand only knocked in 10 goals and gave back one.

So it will be the best scoring team of the tournament in Indonesia against the second-best defensive team in Thailand. 

The War Elephants have the opportunity to win a sixth title while Indonesia hopes to take home their first. 

Kickoff is at 8:30 p.m. on December 29.