Thai coach wants to win three matches before meeting Vietnam
Thailand is in Group B with Malaysia, Singapore, Laos and Vietnam - the team that won the gold medal in the last two SEA Games. According to coach Issara, meeting two strong teams - Vietnam and Malaysia - early in the group stage is a good thing for the students.
Mr. Issara also wants Thailand to "win every match" to move towards the gold medal and make a perfect tournament. "The Vietnam match will be difficult. But if we get good results in the first three matches, we will be more confident when we play Vietnam in the last round," the Thai coach added on SMM Sport.
Thailand started the army on April 30 to meet Singapore, then took a break for the second match. After that, Mr. Issara's teachers and students will respectively meet Malaysia, Laos and Vietnam on May 6, 8, and 11 respectively, all at Prince Stadium with a capacity of 15,000 people.
Coach Issara considers this a beneficial schedule, because Thailand has a lot of time to rest before meeting Malaysia. Although the break between matches is short, the Thai leader still wants to launch the best possible squad in every match.
Because Thai League 1 is still going on until May 12, the Football Association of Thailand (FAT) must work with the clubs to be able to summon the best squad and focus from April 20. Thailand U22 is considered a strong candidate for the 32nd SEA Games gold medal after an impressive performance, finishing fourth at the Doha Cup 2023 friendly tournament.
From now until the team gathers, Coach Issara and the coaching staff will take advantage of the time to gather information about opponents in Cambodia. "We will have all the information we want and have a plan in place before we meet the players," he said.
Thailand has won gold medals in men's football in 16 SEA Games. The task of coach Issara and his students in Cambodia is to bring back the 17th men's football gold medal, to restore the trust of the fans, after letting Vietnam capture the glory in the two recent SEA Games. best.
