Polking: ‘Thailand is back in the SEA Games race’

“I am very happy with my first victory at the 31st SEA Games,” he said at the press conference after the match in the second round of Group B at Thien Truong Stadium. “This win is very important, because in the first round we made a mistake and lost.”

Polking then admitted that Thailand still has some areas to improve and can play better in the next matches. But overall he was satisfied with the first three points. The difference of +4 after two matches also helped Thailand to win the top of the table. “We are back in this year’s SEA Games gold medal race,” Polking emphasized.

Losing Malaysia 1-2 Opening day 7/5 leaves Thailand only one option is to win Singapore. But this put more or less pressure, causing Polking’s army to struggle to enter the game. They were even startled by Singapore’s sharp attacks.

However, in the first half of injury time, Thailand opened the scoring. From a breakthrough, midfielder Ben Davies was fouled and earned a penalty. On the 11m mark, it was the talent playing in England that scored. At the beginning of the second half, luck smiled on Thailand when defender Harhys Stewart scored an own goal from Worachit’s cross. The 2-0 lead made it easy for Thailand to kick, scoring two more goals in a row thanks to Ekanit. In the 81st minute, Teerasak stretched for his substitute Tasa Korawich to cushion the ball close to the wall to make the score 5-0.

Thailand will rest in the match on May 11th. They returned on May 14 with a match against Cambodia, before meeting Laos in the last match on May 16. Polking believes that the upcoming four days off is a good opportunity for Thailand to practice and overcome its limitations, in order to achieve the best results in the remaining leg of the group stage. “We just try to go through each match, and always respect the opponent. Thailand must be very careful, play with the highest determination and concentration, but cannot let mistakes happen like in the first game,” Polking said. more.

The Thai leader also appreciates Cambodia – the next closest opponent. He thinks it is a young and well-organized team thanks to head coach Keisuke Honda and a team of experienced assistants. However, Polking believes that with a good plan, Thailand will take all three points.

With its current position, Thailand opens up the possibility of meeting Vietnam – the team that is second in Group A – in the semi-finals. Polking insists that he has not paid much attention to the knock-out stage because Thailand’s immediate goal is to pass the group stage. But the 46-year-old coach shared that he and his students were ready to meet any opponent, be it Vietnam, the Philippines or Indonesia. “If we want to win the gold medal, we will have to fight every opponent. If Thailand passes the group stage, anything is possible,” Polking said.

Lam Tho