Vietnam and Indonesia football teams are favourites to qualify for
the Southeast Asian Football Championship semi-finals, which will kick
off on November 22 .
The two teams drew spots in
group A, which also includes the Philippines and Laos. Group B, playing
in Singapore, includes Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and Myanmar.
“I
think Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia have the biggest
chance to reach the last four this year. I think Thailand are the
favourite to win the title,” a reporter from Indonesia told Vietnam News
at the My Dinh training pitch.
“Vietnam and
Thailand’s chances to go through the group stage are better than those
of the Philippines and Laos. I hope my country will come out on top this
year. We have been runners-up many times.”
Wichana
Sena, a journalist from Thailand, favoured Singapore to win the title.
The team have been the most successful with four titles, but it is
undeniable that naturalised players had an important role in these past
glories.
Singapore’s current squad no longer have
the services of those influential naturalised players but Sena believed
they had found quality replacements.
“Singapore is
the strongest team this year. They have a new team with new players and
new aspirations. They have very good strikers,” Sena said.
While not thinking much of Vietnam’s chances of winning the title, he hoped for a Vietnam-Thailand final.
“It would be great if Thailand and Vietnam get to the final,” he said./.