BANGKOK, Nov. 15 (Xinhua) — The Thai nationwide soccer group is trying to cheer the house crowd because it takes on China within the opener of the Asian Qualification Round 2 for the FIFA World Cup 2026 right here on Thursday.
Thailand is grouped with South Korea, China and Singapore, and with South Korea anticipated to dominate, the battle over the opposite berth within the group to qualify for the following spherical shall be most probably between China and Thailand.
“We had good preparation. We have a quality squad, quality players, and we’ve been training well,” captain and left-back Theerathon Bunmathan advised the pre-match press convention on Wednesday. “We are ready to make a good performance tomorrow in front of our fans. We are totally focused on getting the three points tomorrow.”
For the primary time in 5 years, the War Elephant is returning to their dwelling pitch of Rajamangala Stadium, which had been below renovation. Head coach Alexandre Polking stated he believes the house crowd could possibly be an amazing motivation for the group.
“By playing in front of our crowd in the big stadium, we are confident that with a lot of effort, a lot of fighting spirit, we can win the game,” he stated.
China is properly forward of Thailand within the newest FIFA rating, however Thailand had a 1-0 victory of their final worldwide fixture in 2019.
Chanathip Songkrasin, who was dubbed “Thai Messi” and scored the one purpose within the 2019 match, remained a key participant for Polking’s facet. But he can be aided by a number of youthful teammates enjoying in overseas leagues, together with Supachok Sarachat, who has scored seven objectives within the Japanese J-League this season.
“We respect China a lot knowing that they are strong. But in front of the crowd here and with confidence and a good fight, I really believe that we can win,” stated Polking.