Bangkok: Hudson is proud of the "mixed Thai national team" for reaching the ASEAN Cup final. Thailand lost to Singapore 1-2 but still advanced to the final of the "ASEAN Cup 2026". It was revealed that attendance was reduced by 3,000 people per match.
According to Thai News Agency, the second leg of the semi-final of the 2026 Hyundai Cup, an ASEAN football championship, saw Thailand, ranked 94th in the world and seven-time champions, host Singapore, ranked 148th in the world and four-time champions, at Rajamangala National Stadium yesterday. Thailand had won the first leg away 3-1.
In the first half, Singapore took the lead 1-0 in the 45th minute with a long-range shot from Harris Stewart. In the 60th minute of the second half, Thailand were awarded a penalty, which substitute Kakhana Khamyok converted to equalize the score at 1-1. But in the 65th minute, Singapore took the lead again, 2-1, through Raihan Stewart's shot which deflected off Pansa Hemviboon and into the net, bringing the aggregate score over two matches to 3-4.
After that, the visiting team tried to attack but couldn't score any more goals. The game ended with Thailand losing to Singapore 1-2, but the aggregate score over two matches still saw them advance to the final with a 4-3 victory, where they will await the winner between Vietnam or Malaysia.
The Thai national team has played three home matches in this tournament at Rajamangala National Stadium, with attendance declining with each game. The first game against Malaysia had 16,037 spectators, the next against Myanmar dropped to 13,026, and the most recent semi-final, despite a reduced ticket price of 100 baht per seat, only had 10,802 spectators.
After the game, Anthony Hudson, the Thai national team coach who suffered his first defeat in 11 games as a coach, said he was proud to reach the final, considering it a great achievement with a mixed team of young players. However, he was disappointed with tonight's performance, feeling that they should have at least achieved a draw. He admitted that Singapore was strong and difficult to deal with.
After this, we're fortunate to have one day to prepare the team before the final, which will help us. After the game, we'll review the full game video and correct mistakes. Overall, things have gone awry; the players are tired, and we made many substitutions due to cramps. We still have plenty of time to face the finalist.
Responding to criticisms that the Thai team plays boring football, Hudson explained at length for about two minutes, saying that the two games we played were within three days, not including travel time. We had new players and faced teams that performed well in the group stage. The physical condition of each player couldn't match the planned playing style, and the results weren't as expected, so there will always be questions.
"That was the expectation of all the fans. Regardless of the score, we reached the final. We had to play every three days, but we still made it to the final. I'm proud of all the players."
Sarach Yooyen, captain of the Thai national team, said after reaching the final that "At this point, we're open to facing anyone, but I think it will likely be Vietnam, which will be a tough challenge for us. But our only goal is to win the championship."
Singapore's head coach, Gavin Lee, said that the team performed well in the tournament, he was proud of the players, and thought the game would go to extra time. He added that it was a good experience in the tournament.
"I'm proud of the connection between the players and the fans. I believe the fans will be proud of our performance. We're improving game by game. The fans are supporting this group of players. Good luck to Thailand in the final!"
ASEAN Cup 2026 Final
The first match is on August 22nd, Thailand will face either Vietnam or Malaysia.
Match 2, August 26: Vietnam or Malaysia vs. Thailand.