Thai players participate in training. (photo provided)
Thailand coach Mano Polkin is hoping War Elephants avoid a repeat of Syria’s mistakes when they take on the United Arab Emirates in their second FIFA Day friendly tonight.
Despite dominating much of Saturday night’s game in Dubai, Thailand beat Syria 3-1.
The game against the UAE will be played at the Al Nahyan Stadium in Abu Dhabi with kick-off scheduled for 1am (Thailand time). It will be broadcast live by AIS Play and Thai Rath TV (32).
Polkin, speaking to the media for the first time since his men’s loss to Syria, said he was disappointed with the result of Saturday night’s friendly.
“It’s a disappointing result for the team,” he said. “Actually, we played really well in that game.
“It was a game we worked really hard for and could have done better.
“We controlled the game but the result was not as expected, which means we need to work harder.”
Polkin added: “There is another game against the UAE and those two games will help us assess our ability to compete with the higher ranked teams.
“Actually, the game against Syria was very close. We just need to reduce the mistakes we make in the game.
“I hope we can do better in the next game.”
Polkin said he would decide on the starting lineup after checking the health of all players.
Meanwhile, Thailand’s U23 team will face Kuwait in the International U23 Doha Cup third-place play-off in Doha tonight.