Some of Southeast Asia’s finest footballing talents will be in action at the ASEAN Mitsubishi Electric Cup™ 2024, the group stage of which kick off on 8 December.
Thailand’s Chanathip Songkrasin and Vietnam’s Nguyen Quang Hai are just two of the names who made their mark in multiple editions of the regional showpiece in recent years along their way to creating a lasting legacy in Southeast Asian football.
New stars will be born and some others will rise to shine even brighter during the 15th edition of the tournament too, so join ASEAN United FC as we pick five players to keep an eye out for in Group B of the tournament.
Nguyen Quang Hai (Vietnam)
The Most Valuable Player in the 2018 ASEAN Championship as Vietnam won their second regional title, Nguyen Quang Hai will be fired up to guide the Golden Star Warriors to a third crown, having come agonisingly close to the feat in 2022, when they lost a hard-fought title clash against Thailand.
As a 20-year-old in 2018, Quang Hai guided Vietnam to the final of the AFC U-23 Championship in China PR before becoming the creative fulcrum of the senior team, while also scoring three goals on his own, as they won the ASEAN title under Park Hang-seo.
The driving force behind Vietnam's run to the quarter-final of the 2019 AFC Asian Cup, Quang Hai also set the stage alight at the 2022 ASEAN Championship. In his fourth appearance in the competition, the Vietnamese star will hope to further etch his name into the history books by helping Vietnam win the title for a second time in six years.
Marselino Ferdinan (Indonesia)
Recognised with the Young Player of the Tournament award at the 2022 ASEAN Championship, Marselino Ferdinan will hope to leave the competition with the best player gong and a much-awaited maiden Southeast Asian crown for Shin Tae-yong's Indonesia.
The supremely talented Indonesian burst onto the scene as a 17-year-old in 2022 to become the second-youngest player to represent the Garuda and guided the nation to their first-ever gold medal at the Southeast Asian Games last year. Now a key cog of the senior team, he plies his trade in England with Championship side Oxford United.
If anyone needed a reminder of his quality, Marselino produced it in abundance just days ago when he scored twice for Shin Tae-yong's side as they posted a big 2-0 win against continental giants Saudi Arabia in Jakarta in the third round of the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.
Jefferson Tabinas (Philippines)
Jefferson Tabinas has two goals and an assist for the Philippines in his last five international appearances and he is set to play a pivotal role in Albert Capellas' side, who are hoping to take the nation to the semi-finals of the ASEAN Championship for the first time since 2018.
Born in Japan, Tabinas started his professional career with Kawasaki Frontale before loan spells at FC Gifu and Gamba Osaka. It was at J2 League's Mito HollyHock, where he established himself as a starter and earned him the call-up to the Philippines side in 2021.
Tabinas, whose brother Paul is also a Philippines international, can play in a number of positions in defence and midfield and the 26-year-old, who currently plays for Thai League 1 giants Buriram United, will hope to establish himself as a leader in a Philippines side in transition.
Maung Maung Lwin (Myanmar)
Maung Maung Lwin has already created history for Myanmar as a key part of their historic FIFA U-20 World Cup appearance in 2015. He didn't have to wait long to make his senior international debut in a 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers match against Lebanon before scoring his maiden goal the following year.
This will be the 29-year-old's fifth appearance in the ASEAN Championship and he will hope to captain his nation as they look to reach the semi-finals for the first time since 2016. Maung Maung Lwin has also scored in three different editions of the tournament -- 2018, 2020 and 2022 -- and will set his sights on making it four on the spin this time.
The Myanmar skipper began his club career with Hantharwady United before moving to Yangon Untied with whom he Myanmar National League and MFF Charity Cup titles in 2018. He currently plies his trade in the Thai top division with Lamphun Warriors, with whom he won the Thai League 2 title in 2022.
Bounphachan Bounkong (Laos)
Bounphachan Bounkong will be making his third ASEAN Championship appearance at only 23 years of age and this time, he will wear the captain's armband for the side, who are coached by Ha Hyeok-jun and are looking to reach the knockout stages of the competition in their 14th appearance in the main event.
He was named the most valuable player as Laos reached the semi-finals of the 2023 AFF U-23 Championship in 2022. He had already cemented his spot in the senior team by then, having made his international debut in 2018. His latest goal for the national team came against Thailand in a 1-1 draw in November.
Bounphachan loves scoring goals and he grew his reputation with his club Young Elephants before moving to Cambodian champions PKR Svay Rieng FC last year and made his ASEAN Club Championship Shopee Cup™ debut against Terengganu FC in August.
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