Chiangrai United president Mitti Tiyapairat denied the speculations that the club would sign Cambodia star Chan Vathanaka for its ASEAN player slot in the Thai League next season.
According to Goal Thailand, Mitti insisted Chiangrai would not use any ASEAN player in the 2018 season because of the need for foreign players to upgrade their teams.
“I have to admire the football association and other clubs that have the desire to create something new to expand the fan base. Because now we are the 10th highest quality league in the continent and the 1st in ASEAN, I quite agree with this idea,” Mitti said.
“The ASEAN quota, which includes Laos and Myanmar, have weighed on this issue. However, it must be acknowledged that Thai players have a higher quality than ASEAN players.
“And the goal of our team next season is to win the Thai league so we prefer foreign players. We have to upgrade the team.”
Vathanaka will return to Cambodia since his former club in Japan Fujieda MYFC decided not to extend his contract.
