Thawatchai Damrong-Ongtrakul opened up after the Thai national team lost 0-3 to Japan in the men's football Asian Games 2026 group stage third match.
On 23 Sep 2026, Coach Wang Thawatchai Damrong-Ongtrakul spoke after the 'War Elephants' Thai national team suffered a heavy 0-3 defeat to the 'Samurai Blue' Japan national team in the men's football Asian Games 2026 group stage third match that just concluded, leading Thailand to advance to the quarterfinals as the runner-up of Group A.
Recently, Coach Wang Thawatchai Damrong-Ongtrakul said, "Today was a good game for us facing Japan in the first round. They have quality players. I must praise our youngsters for their high level of patience during the match. We already knew we had qualified for the next round as second place, and who we would face. Japan plays quality football, and we couldn’t stop their scoring."
"We have faced China several times this year. They have developed well, finishing as runners-up in the Asian Championship. Having played them before, we rotated players in this game to keep the squad in optimal condition to prepare for the upcoming match against China. This Chinese team is very capable and has trained together for a long time, which makes their teamwork strong. Facing China will not be easy for Thailand, and their coach will surely have well-planned tactics. Our goal is to develop these young players to reach the senior Thai national team; the speed of their progress varies. Some advance faster than expected, but we have replacements and players participating in this tournament, and we will do our best."
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Coach Wang Thawatchai Damrong-Ongtrakul's team advanced to the quarterfinals of the men's football Asian Games 2026 (Asian Games Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Men's Football Tournament) as the runner-up of Group A, and will face China in the quarterfinals.