Will it be lucky 13 for Thais?

The 14th edition of the tournament where this year, it will be known as the AFF HDBank Futsal Championship 2017, will kick off in two days at the Phu Tho Indoor Stadium here in Ho Chi Minh City.

And the Phu Tho Indoor Stadium is quite a familiar setting for Futsal in the region and where coincidentally, it was also the venue for the only AFF Futsal crown that was won by Indonesia when they beat Malaysia 5-0 in the final back in 2010.

Given that in 2010 Thailand had opted against taking part where this time round, it is Australia who had decided from making the trip, it does not mean that the lustre of competitiveness would be waned. Far from it.

If the standard that was shown at the recent SEA Games in Kuala Lumpur is anything to go by, then be prepared for an explosive encounter as the likes of Indonesia, Vietnam and Malaysia are all quite capable of pushing Thailand off the pedestal.

In Kuala Lumpur, it was Indonesia who served the biggest surprise of the tournament when they beat the Thais. But their lapse in concentration or rather the disbelief that they could have knocked down the Thais would weigh heavily in the end which cost them a place at the podium.

Playing at home would give hosts Vietnam certain advantage where their recent trip to China would have greatly enhanced the team’s cohesion.

At the China tourney, Vietnam finished third after losing to Croatia 3-1, beating China 4-3 and drawing Holland 2-2.

Malaysia had also gone abroad to sharpen up the team where they had played against Qatar twice – a 1-1 draw and then a 5-4 victory – in Doha.

Given the quality at their disposal, Thailand would remained as the firm favourites although for once, hope springs eternal that one of the ‘outside’ teams would defy the odds to give the big boys a run for their money.

As the clock trickle down to kick off and the finishing touches being put to the venue at the Phu Tho Stadium in the next 36 hours, every teams will be in their final tweaking process as they look to make a strong impact in their first game of the championship.

GROUPINGS

GROUP A: Vietnam, Myanmar, Brunei DS, Philippines, Indonesia

GROUP B: Thailand, Malaysia, Timor Leste, Laos