Southeast Asian rivals Indonesia and Malaysia found themselves in a tough group for this year’s AFF Championship. The two nations were drawn together in Group B alongside defending champions Vietnam as well as Indochina duo Cambodia and Laos.
Tuesday’s draw also placed regional giants Thailand in a tough group of their own, with the Changsuek being placed in Group A alongside emerging forces the Philippines as well as Singapore. Myanmar could provide some stiff competition on paper, however the ongoing coup and protests within the country could weaken the Burmese Lions considerably, while the qualifying play-off winner between Brunei Darussalam and Timor-Leste are tipped to be the punching bag of Group A.
Despite being drawn into a tough group, the Football Federation of Indonesia (PSSI) voiced their confidence that the Timnas Garuda could eke something out of this tournament.
“We’re confident that Shin Tae-yong and his men will advance out of this tough group,” said PSSI secretary general Yunus Nusi, as quoted from the federation’s website, “The PSSI will do their best to prepare our national team for the upcoming AFF Championship, with hope that we could win some silverware there.”
Tae-yong himself is excited for the upcoming tournament. Having faced against – and lost to – Park Hang-seo’s impressive Vietnam side in the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, the South Korean is eager to get one over his countrymen in the regional tournament. He’s also well-aware of the fierce rivalry between Indonesia and Malaysia, which could make their encounter a very spicy affair.
“Being in Group B alongside Vietnam and Malaysia is indeed an intriguing prospect for me,” said Tae-yong as quoted from the PSSI website, “They’re tough opposition but we will do our best to win every match.”
Meanwhile in the Malaysia camp, head coach Tan Cheng Hoe spoke to Malay Mail on how the Harimau Malaya won’t underestimate their Group B opponents. This includes Indonesia – who Malaysia beat twice in the World Cup qualifiers – and Cambodia.
“Vietnam are heavy favorites in the group but what’s most important for us is to take each game one at a time,” said former Kedah Darul Aman tactician Tan, “And we’re focusing our attention not only on Vietnam, but also our traditional enemies Indonesia. We will also not take Cambodia lightly as they have a squad of talented players.”
With everyone else in Southeast Asia already out of the running for the 2022 World Cup, Vietnam face a packed schedule as the Golden Dragons will not only contend with the 2021 AFF Championship, but also the third round of the World Cup qualifiers. Added with the fact that the 2021 V.League 1 season has been scrapped thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, Nguyen Quang Hai and his colleagues will have to rely on international matches to maintain their preparedness.
With a grueling gauntlet of matches awaiting his men, head coach Park decided to be cautious with Vietnam’s target for this year’s regional competition.
“Except Brunei and Timor-Leste who had to undergo a qualifying match, everyone else in Southeast Asia are pretty much on the same level. Which is why I consider our group draw to be quite fair,” said Park, as quoted from VNExpress, “Everyone in Group B are tough opponents and we must be at our best for them. The goal is to advance out of the group, then think about the semifinals, before last but not least, we focus our attention to the final. But for now, qualifying out of the group stages is our main priority.”
“Vietnam are currently competing in the third round of the World Cup qualifiers,” Park continued, “Inevitably this will cause some problems for us as we have to go around a lot for matches, it is quite tiring. And since this season’s V.League has been declared null and void, the coaching staff will have to pick players solely from our World Cup qualifying squad. This could pose some issue if one of our players gets injured as we lack the human resources to replace him.”
The 2021 AFF Championship will replace the 2020 edition of the biennial tournament that has been canceled due to the pandemic. The tournament will be held from December 5th to January 1st, with the group stages being likely to be held in a single country to prevent the risk of spreading COVID-19 through travel. With their stringent measures against the pandemic, Singapore are heavy favorites to host this year’s group stages.