Abu Dhabi: The Philippines' Michael Falkesgaard reckons Thailand can shock China and progress to the quarter-finals.
The giant stopper exited the tournament after the Azkals lost all three of their Group C matches against South Korea, China and Kyrgyztan.
Having gone up against China, a game which saw the Azkals lose 3-0, courtesy of a brace from Wu Lei and a goal by Yu Dabao, the Danish-born star is adamant Sirisak Yodyardthai's War Elephants can match their peers.
"China are a good side but Thailand have a big chance to get a shock result," Falkesgaard told FOX Sports Asia.
"The Thais must pressure the Chinese back line if they want to get anything out of this game because while China are good up front, they do have defensive issues dealing with technical players.
"And that is exactly where the likes of Chanathip [Songkrasin] and Tristan [Do] come into play.
"Chanathip is the leader on and off the pitch and usually when he is on fire and plays well, the team ride on that and have a good game."
Falkesgaard's stocks have risen after some superb individual performances at the tournament and he will now return to Thailand to prepare for the new Thai League season with True Bangkok United.
While he is disappointed to have seen his Asian Cup journey come to an end, the former Brondby player is eager to get started with Bangkok United, especially with the arrival of some new star players.
"The club have invested really well in the off-season and have brought him some top quality players like Tristan, Nelson Bonilla, [Mike] Havenaar, and Peerapat [Notchaiya]," he added. "Together with our current squad of players like Mika [Chunuonsee], Camp [Sanrawat Dechmitr] and Leesaw [Teeratep Winothai], it'll be a mad season of good attacking football!"