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Polkin wants to focus on his players
Thailand midfielder Chanathip Songkrasin, center forward and teammates attend a training session ahead of the upcoming two friendlies.
Thailand coach Mano Polkin said he still has good players despite a lack of some stars.
The Elephants are set to play two warm-up games in the United Arab Emirates, against Syria on Saturday and the UAE next Tuesday.
Polkin did not call up veteran striker Teerasil Dangda and midfielder Sarach Yooyen, both of Thai League 1 struggling giants BG Pathum United.
“The absence of Teerasil and Sarach won’t be a problem for the team,” Polking said.
“I want to focus on the players we have. We have a couple of good players. Missing some players is not a problem because we have other players who can take their place. I have faith in all 24 of our players.”
Without Teerasil, their front line is likely to be led by in-form striker Supachai Chaided, who is currently the top scorer for the Thai League 1 team with 14 goals.
Chanathip Songkrasin, midfield playmaker for Japanese club Kawasaki Frontale, returned to the team after opting not to play in the ASEAN Cup, which Thailand won earlier this year.
Forward Ekanit Panya was out through injury and Polkin did not call up a replacement.
“These two games are important for our team because they are good teams. We want to see where we are when we meet the higher-ranked teams,” the Germany-Brazil coach said.
Meanwhile, experienced duo Maya Yoshida and Yuu Nagatomo have both been left out of Japan’s squad for friendlies against Uruguay and Colombia this month.
Defender Hiroki Sakai and midfielder Takumi Minamino were also left out of the line-up, which includes six players from J-League trio Ryotaro Tsunoda, Kashif Bangnagande and Riku Handa.
“I hope to have more and deeper players so that we can become the strongest national team in the future,” said head coach Moriyasu Shiro, who will lead Japan to the knockout stages of the 2022 World Cup.
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