Two young Thai and Singaporean stars could make Dinh Bac lose the 'Top Scorer' title at ASEAN Cup 2026

The race for the ASEAN Cup 2026 top scorer is becoming exciting as Nguyen Dinh Bac, Teerasak Poeiphimai, and Ilhan Fandi battle it out in the semifinals.

Vietnam's striker Nguyen Dinh Bac currently leads the rankings with 5 goals in 5 matches, averaging a goal every 80 minutes. Dinh Bac exploded from the group stage, scoring a hat-trick in a 7-0 win over Timor-Leste, before adding two more goals against Cambodia.

Close behind Dinh Bac is Ilhan Fandi, Singapore's key striker, with 4 goals in 5 matches. Ilhan scored against Cambodia, Timor-Leste, and Indonesia, and then found the net in a 1-3 loss to Thailand in the first leg of the semifinals. With a rate of 62 minutes per goal, the Singaporean forward is one of the most efficient scorers in the tournament.

Teerasak Poeiphimai also has 4 goals in 4 matches. Notably, the Thai striker just scored a brace in a 3-1 win over Singapore in the semifinal first leg, closing in on Dinh Bac. Teerasak needs only 58 minutes on average to score a goal, the best efficiency among the leaders.

Indonesia's Lee Baker also scored 4 goals but is no longer in the top scorer race as the archipelago team was eliminated in the group stage.

With Dinh Bac only one goal ahead of his two rivals, the top scorer race remains wide open. In particular, Teerasak and Ilhan will face each other directly when Singapore plays the second leg of the semifinal at Thailand's Rajamangala Stadium today. Therefore, both could overtake Dinh Bac in the top scorer race today if they score two or more goals.

Interestingly, Dinh Bac, Ilhan Fandi, and Teerasak are all very young. Dinh Bac is only 21, while Ilhan Fandi and Teerasak are 23. All three are promising forwards for Southeast Asian football and have attracted significant attention.

At ASEAN Cup 2026, Dinh Bac has been regularly started by coach Kim Sang Sik, while Ilhan Fandi and Teerasak have been rotated by their coaches. Both players possess goal-scoring qualities and can explode in big matches, becoming formidable opponents for Dinh Bac in the ASEAN Cup 2026 top scorer race.

Ilhan Fandi kept Singapore's hopes alive with a goal that narrowed the score to 1-3 in the semifinal first leg against Thailand. Meanwhile, Teerasak made his mark with a brace in that match.

In the first leg against Malaysia, Dinh Bac did not score. However, he still has an opportunity to find the net in the second leg. If Dinh Bac performs explosively and helps Vietnam reach the final and successfully defend their title, he will likely claim the top scorer award. Earlier, Dinh Bac won the top scorer award at the 2026 U23 Asian Cup.

However, the explosive form of Fandi and Teerasak has clearly posed a challenge to Dinh Bac, making the ASEAN Cup 2026 top scorer race more dramatic and exciting.

It will be interesting to see how the three players — Dinh Bac, Ilhan Fandi, and Teerasak — perform in the remaining matches of ASEAN Cup 2026. These three faces could be the most notable strikers in Southeast Asian football in the future.

ASEAN Cup 2026 Top Scorer Race List