Laos U23 vs Thailand U23

Laos U23 and Thailand U23 are set to trade tackles at the Thien Truong Stadium in a seemingly straightforward Southeast Asia Games task for the nominal visitors.

Only three rounds into Southeast Asia Games Group B, Laos already look like a doomed outfit. Nailed to the bottom of the table, they started the competition with an action-packed 2-2 draw with Singapore before suffering a brace of multi-goal margin defeats to Cambodia and Malaysia in the subsequent two matches. Despite experiencing a thoroughly disappointing tournament, the ‘Million Elephants’ have offered plenty of entertainment to neutrals. Indeed, their three Group B fixtures have all featured 4+ goals and both teams on the scoresheet, averaging 4.33 goals per game. Moreover, their last two Group B outings have contained precisely two first-half goals, highlighting the possibility for a quick-fire start.

In the meantime, Thailand’s Group B campaign started with a whimper rather than a bang as they turned a 1-0 half-time lead into an underwhelming 2-1 defeat to Malaysia. However, their two subsequent group games have been plain sailing, with the ‘War Elephants’ beating Singapore and Cambodia by the identical 5-0 scoreline. Delivering action from the offset, Thailand have opened the scoring before half-time in all three Group B outings thus far, including a thumping 3-0 HT lead over Cambodia last time out. With third-placed Singapore only one point adrift ahead of the kick-off, Thailand will be looking to solidify their runner-up spot in this section by dispatching Group B minnows whom they’ve defeated in their last three H2Hs by an aggregate score of 11-0.