The 2022 AFF Championship is officially underway with the Group A action kicking off, as defending champions Thailand opened with an emphatic 5-0 rout of minnows Brunei Darussalam at Kuala Lumpur Stadium.
Meanwhile, there was an upset over at Morodok Techo National Stadium in Phnom Penh as Philippines -- who have reached the semifinals in four of the past six editions -- fell to a shock 3-2 defeat to Cambodia.
With the action at the tournament coming thick and fast with the teams back in action on Dec. 23, we take a look at four talking points from the opening round.
Azkals already facing uphill task
With Thailand and Indonesia, who were not in action on Match Day 1, the leading contenders to finish in Group A's top two, Philippines were already facing a challenge to break into the semis and likely needed to get a result against either of those two teams while picking up maximum points in their other games.
A opening loss to Cambodia is far from ideal.
In what now seems a customary practice for the Azkals, their preparations cannot have been helped by the fact they only announced Josep Ferre as their coach only about a week before the start of play.
With plenty of youth in the Philippines squad, the 2022 campaign could perhaps be more of a platform to build towards the future rather than one that sees the Azkals return to the final four.
Cambodia ready to show how far they have come
Cambodia are in that stage of their development where they are no longer pushovers for Southeast Asia's stronger teams but are still some way off from challenging them legitimately.
But while the Philippines team they came up against on Tuesday may not be as formidable as past Azkals outfits, it was still quite a statement the Cambodians made -- especially with the fast start they served up.
Cambodia raced to a two-goal lead inside the opening 20 minutes and then showed equally impressive resilience after Philippines had fought back to pull level by the 55th minute, hitting their opponents once again with Reung Bunheing scoring his second of the afternoon and what would prove to be the winner.
Brunei handed reality check on AFF return
Having last featured at the AFF Championship in the maiden edition back in 1996, Brunei have had to wait 26 years to once again grace the region's premier international football tournament -- only to be brought back down to earth with a cruel opening game against record champions Thailand.
To Brunei's credit, they were only losing by a respectable 2-0 scoreline until the 88th minute before an Awangku Yura Indera own-goal and an injury-time double by Peeradol Chamratsamee gave the scoreline a more-lopsided look.
There is every likelihood that the Bruneians will be on the receving end of a few more heavy defeats, so the pass mark for them will be if they can put up a creditable showing against Indonesia, Philippines or Cambodia.
How many more goals will Teerasil add to his record?
Already the AFF Championship's all-time record scorer with 19 goals, it took Teerasil Dangda just 44 minutes of his 2022 campaign to notch a 20th after Bordin Phala had opened the scoring for the Thais.
With tougher tests in await, Teerasil was denied the chance to add to his tally by the 72nd minute when he was substituted by War Elephants coach Alexandre Polking but it should only be a matter of time before he nets number 21.
Although he turns 35 next June, Teerasil -- widely regarded as the region's most-feared striker over the past decade -- is still a formidable opponent for any defence at this level, and he is shaping up to be a pivotal figure behind Thailand's quest for a 7th AFF title despite his increasing years.