BANGKOK (17 Sept 2022) – Thai captain Kritsada Wongkaew has been ruled out of the AFC Futsal Asian Cup 2022 in Kuwait later this month.
This follows the severe injury the 34-year-old suffered at the recent Continental Futsal Championship 2022 in which host Thailand finished third after beating Finland 9-8.
“The final 14 players are already in my mind, but I can’t reveal it as yet. As for the nose injury to Kritsada, the chance that he will be in the final 14 is quite difficult. There is very little chance,” said Thailand Futsal national team head coach Carlos Cesar.
“It’s pretty certain that he’s not going (to Kuwait). Given the risk of post-infection surgery even though the surgery is short. I personally don’t want to risk it here.”
“Captain Chang (Kritsada) is my key player, so we have to think long-term. It’s a matter of risk to the athlete. I’m sorry for the injury to Kritsada. I hope he will recover fast. He’s a very important player for us.”
For the AFC Futsal Asian Cup 2022, Thailand are in Group A against host Kuwait, Iraq, and Oman.
“There’s no need to change our plans (for AFC Futsal Asian Cup). We did not have captain Chang in the second half of the game against Iran. We fought very strongly. We need to trust the players we have now and for the Thai Futsal team to move forward,” he added.
For the record, Morocco won the Continental Futsal Championship 2022 after beating Iran 4-3 in the final.
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Pictures Courtesy #FutsalThailand
