Obb Deewajin
Football Tribe Thailand
Thailand had a decent friendly match against Congo, in which they drew 1-1. Akira Nishino’s men were impressive in the first half, but lose their balance after the coach start testing out different tactical options in the second. The War Elephants will be without 2 J League-based players, Chanathip Songkrasin and Thitipan Puangchan, when they welcome UAE on Tuesday night, which could mean a massive decline in the squad’s quality. On the positive side, former-Sanfrecce Hiroshima striker Teerasil Dangda returns to the national team, looking much fitter than he was last time out. Yokohama F.Marinos left-back Theerathon Bunmathan, who missed the Congo match, is also ready to start and has come out and spoken of the upbeat mood inside the training camp.
The UAE are a strong side who plays with direct attacking football and is full of players with great individual qualities such as the magical Omar Abdulrahman or the lethal Ali Mabkhout. Funny enough, the last time Thailand beat UAE was almost exactly 15 years ago (13th October 2004) at the Rajamangala Stadium.
Player to Watch – Ali Mabkhout – Striker – Age 29 – Al Jazira: He can finish with both feet and so hard to catch when he’s on the run. But most importantly, Ali Mabkhout loves scoring against Thailand. The striker netted the opener when both sides met in the Asian Cup earlier this year. He also scored 3 times in 2 matches against Thailand in the last edition of the World Cup qualifiers. Mabkhout confidence must be sky-high after his hattrick against Indonesia – definitely someone the Thai defenders must keep an eye on.
Match Time: Tuesday, 15th October. Kickoff 19:00 Thailand time. Thammasat Stadium.