A late surge from Thailand gave them a fourth Asean Football Federation (AFF) Suzuki Cup triumph on Saturday night, after a thrilling second leg of the final in Kuala Lumpur.

Although coach Kiatisuk Senamuang's men lost 2-3 before 90,000 fans at Bukit Jalil Stadium, they did enough to win the golden trophy 4-3 on aggregate after a 2-0 victory in Bangkok on Wednesday.

With Malaysia Prime Minister Najib Razak cheering the home team on, the Tigers stormed into a seventh minute lead when midfielder Safiq Rahim slotted home a penalty.

Things got even better during first-half stoppage time when Indra Putra nodded Norsharul Idlan Talaha's cross past goalkeeper Kawin Thamsatchanan.

Their comeback was seemingly complete in the 58th minute, after Safiq curled in a glorious 25-metre free-kick to top the tournament's scoring charts with six goals and give Malaysia a 3-2 aggregate lead.

Thailand looked incapable of getting that precious away goal until eight minutes from time when midfielder Charyl Chappuis pounced on a rebound after goalkeeper Farizal Marlias had parried a free-kick.

And in the 87th minute, attacking midfielder Chanathip Songkrasin, nicknamed "Messi J" by the Thai fans, showed a touch of the Barcelona superstar's flair when he collected the ball outside the Tigers' box and whipped a swerving screamer that gave the goalkeeper no chance.

With the 4-3 aggregate win, Kiatisuk became the first person to lift the AFF Cup as a player (in 1996, 2000 and 2002) and as a coach.