CHANVIT CONFIDENT OF REACHING SECOND ROUND

The Thai national team which had just returned from a winning tour of Germany maintained their fine form to beat Qatar 2-0 at the Stadium Rajamangala.

“After seeing how we played, I feel much more confident that Thailand will reach the second round of the competition,” said Chanvit (pic), who led Thailand to the runners-up spot at the recent Asean Football Championship.

But he admitted that there were weaknesses in the squad and where: “we needed to improve our counter-attacks, so we have to look at who will be quick enough to do this.”

In front of close to 20,000 ardent supporters, Thailand made sure of their win over their rivals from the Middle East with goals from Tawan Sripan and Sutee Suksomkit.

Incidentally, Thailand played the match against Qatar in their new kit sponsored by Nike who has signed a five-year deal with the Thai FA.

For the Asian Cup, Thailand have been placed Group A against Iraq, Oman and Australia.

Their first match in the Asian Cup – which is the opening game of the tournament – will be against Iraq at the Stadium Rajamangala this Saturday with kick-off at 7.35pm (local time).