Southeast Asia

SEA Best XI – AFC U23 Qualification

By: , March 28, 2019 6:55 pm
Safawi Rasid Credit – FA Malaysia

Check out the best South-East Asian players who starred during the recent AFC U23 Qualifying Campaign:

Goalkeeper

Name: Bui Tien Dung

Nationality: Vietnam

Age: 22

Club: Hanoi FC

The goalkeeper, typically an understudy to Dang Van Lam for the senior team, came into his own right in a phenomenal fashion this tournament. Vietnam went through the entire qualifying campaign without conceding a single goal, finishing on top of a very challenging group.

Center Back

Name: Shinnaphat Leeaoh

Nationality: Thailand

Age: 22

Club: Chiangrai United

Aggressive, fearless and resolute. Shinnaphat was handed the captains' armband prior to the tournament and he did himself proud, directing the defense with his leadership and great organization skills.

Center Back

Name: Irfan Fandi

Nationality: Singapore

Age: 21

Club: BG Pathum United (Thailand)

Singapore had a tough group, playing against Hong Kong, Mongolia, and North Korea. They struggled a little bit to face the energetic and speedy gameplay by the sides from East Asia. But the contribution of Irfan helped the team maintain a strong defensive line. The center back even scored one goal during the competition as the young Lions won 3-1 in their last match.

Center Back

Name: Bagas Adi Nugroho

Nationality: Indonesia

Age: 22

Club: Bhayangkara FC

After being trashed 4-0 by Thailand, Indra Sjafri changed his center back composition and placed Bagas Adi alongside Nurhidayat for the next two games. The defense looked more organized as Bagas  Bagas has an ability to lead his teammates from the back, maintain the game's tempo or even start attacks from his spot through the midfielders and strikers.

Right Midfielder

Name: Safawi Rasid

Nationality: Malaysia

Age: 22

Club: Johor Darul Ta'zim

Safawi played well during the campaign, and scored an important goal during the second match against Laos. He did everything that was asked of him. His abilities and game-changing potential have made him a standout for the Tigers.

Central Midfielder

Name: Wisarut Imura

Nationality: Thailand

Age: 21

Club: Bangkok United

The tireless midfielder did well to cancel the opposition's attacks. His short passing ability also kept the teams' rhythm flowing when his side went forward.

Central Midfielder

Name: Nik Akif

Nationality: Malaysia

Age: 19

Club: Kelantan

The 19 years old midfielder from Kelantan played well during qualification campaign. He made sure his counterparts did not have an easy time in the middle of the park and always distributed the ball to the left or right flank to help Malaysia get in good positions. He wass one of the top performance during the last game against China.

Left Midfielder

Name: Doan Van Hau

Nationality: Vietnam

Age: 20

Club: Hanoi FC

Good at both defense and attack, the versatile player recorded important assist for Duc Chinh to score the opening goal against Thailand

Attacking Midfielder

Name: Nguyen Quang Hai

Nationality: Vietnam

Age: 22

Club: Hanoi FC

Quang Hai was the heart of this Vietnam team, as he played a crucial role in all 3 matches. He scored a goal in the match against Brunei and recorded two assists against Thailand and Indonesia.

Striker

Name: Dimas Drajad

Nationality: Indonesia

Age: 21

Club: TIRA-Persikabo

The striker put in a sensational performance in Indonesia's final match against Brunei after getting his chance off the subs bench. After scoring for his side, Dimas was forced to play as an emergency goalkeeper after M. Riyandi was sent off. During his time between the sticks, Dimas kept out a penalty to earn his nation their only three points during the qualifying campaign.

Striker

Name: Supachai Jaided

Nationality: Thailand

Age: 20

Club: Buriram United

Supachai scored a brace in the opening fixture against Indonesia before notching up a hat-trick over Brunei. A red card against rival Vietnam was a massive let down for Supachai and the Thai fans. Still, we must not let this dampen what the young striker has achieved in this tournament.