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BG Pathum United face uphill task to stop Buriram United from translating domestic dominance onto regional stage

BG Pathum United have a 3-1 aggregate lead to overturn when they take on fellow Thai League 1 outfit Buriram United in the second leg of their ASEAN Club Championship semifinal on Wednesday. SPORTFIVE

As of last week, Buriram United are now record 11-time champions of Thai League 1.

With a 7-0 rout of Nongbua Pitchaya, Buriram secured the title as they finished a solitary point ahead of Bangkok United - who ensured the race would go down to the wire as they kept up their end of the bargain with a 4-2 victory of their own over PT Prachuap.

Buriram were already regarded to be the undisputed kings of Thailand. A fourth consecutive league title will only reinforce that notion.

Having also remarkably completed five domestic trebles previously, they are also in the running to do so in 2024-25 with semifinals in the FA Cup and League Cup to come against BG Pathum United and Nongbua respectively over the next fortnight.

But there is also a new piece of silverware up for grabs this season -- and it will be the next immediate assignment for Buriram on Wednesday.

While they have made waves on the continental stage previously, matching their best performance in the AFC Champions League Elite last month when they featured in the quarterfinals of Asia's premier club competition, regional glory also beckons.

*Catch all the ASEAN Club Championship action live on the ASEAN United FC YouTube channel here!

With the ASEAN Club Championship returning this season after a 20-year hiatus, teams now have the chance to lay claim to being champions of Southeast Asia.

When the tournament was last held in 2005, Buriram were still known as PEA FC and were affiliated to the Provincial Electrical Authority, a state enterprise under Thailand's Ministry of Interior.

They were not even based in the northeastern province until being bought over by local politician Newin Chidchob, who has since presided over the club's rise to Thai football's preeminent power.

The tournament's return now presents Buriram the chance to win a tournament they have not lifted before.

They have one foot in the final but it will be familiar foes looking to pull off a comeback and deny them a shot of tasting success at an ASEAN level.

BGPU are Thailand's other representatives in the ASEAN Club Championship.

They have also enjoyed something of a resurgence in recent times, with a rebranding to BGPU from their previous guise of Bangkok Glass coinciding with remarkable back-to-back titles as they won the Thai League 1 in their first season back in the top tier after a shock relegation.

Their big-spending ways have seen them land prominent signings in established Thailand internationals such as Chanathip Songkrasin, Teerasil Dangda and Sarach Yooyen, as well as regional stars in Singapore's striking brothers Ikhsan and Ilhan Fandi.

Yet, since that title triumph, they have failed to really come close to challenging Buriram for top honours.

They might have finished third this term but were 17 points off the pace. They even slumped as low as 9th in 2022-23.

And they struggled to really land a blow a month ago as they fell to a 3-1 loss to Buriram in the first leg of the ASEAN Club Championship semis.

They will have home advantage on Wednesday.

It is worth noting that BGPU won the last meeting between the two sides in the league last month, although Buriram were victorious in the three previous meetings this season across three different competitions -- including last month's first leg.

That result will should give BGPU further belief that Buriram are beatable. If not over the course of the season, then at least over 90 minutes.

At the moment, Buriram remain on course to translate their domestic dominance onto the regional scene -- with a final against Vietnam's Công An Hà Nội awaiting the victors.

BGPU will have no shortage of motivation to deny their local rivals even more joy -- but they do face an uphill task on Wednesday evening.