Nguyen fresher... but the gold will stay in Thailand
Thailand and Vietnam have met as scheduled in the men's football final of the SEA Games.
Yesterday, I had the opportunity to watch both semifinal matches courtside at Rajamangala National Stadium.
I must thank Madam Pang's staff who kindly took care of me, since I no longer have a press ID like before.
After closely observing the gameplay from start to finish with my own eyes, I must admit that
the Vietnamese players clearly have a better style of play than the Thai national team.
Although they scored two goals to beat a strong Philippines team in a tense finish,
their offensive quality has improved a lot compared to the two group stage matches.
In contrast, our Thai team played cautiously against Malaysia, just enough to reach the final.
We'll talk about other things later!
Besides the quick lead from “Captain Mix” Yotsakorn Burapha's precise free kick early in the game,
the Thai players did not do much to impress the football fans.
Many looked sluggish and underperformed, so the game lacked the expected excitement.
In fact, the Yellow Tigers had a player sent off, so we had a numerical advantage and should have dominated more.
But as the game went on, Malaysia's ten men managed several counterattacks that startled us.
Fortunately, “Captain Phet” Sarawat Phosamun, our goalkeeper, remained calm and reliable, not panicking under pressure.
Without his composure, we might have conceded several scary goals inside the box.
In short, the Thai players did not please the fans and underperformed, but in the end, they still made it to the gold medal match.
Honestly, we should sympathize with “Coach Wang” Thawatchai Damrong-Ongtrakul
who has to manage the team carefully each match to get the best results possible.
Remember, the SEA Games tournament does not fall within an official FIFA international match window.
Meanwhile, the Football Association has not suspended the league for players to train fully with the national team.
Many key players have had to shuttle back and forth between the national team camp and their clubs, as we have seen.
Given this, how could they not be tired or worn out? How could they endure it all?
This contrasts sharply with Vietnam, who are seriously determined to win the SEA Games gold on our soil.
They even suspended their own league to allow the national team to focus on the SEA Games.
No wonder we see the Vietnamese players energetic, running like horses.
I guess Coach Kim Sang-Sik wants to make history
by leading the young Golden Star team to claim gold here at Rajamangala.
Just like they did earlier this year with the senior Vietnamese team,
who defeated the War Elephants on home ground and lifted the ASEAN championship trophy, much to the pain of Thai fans.
However, as the saying goes, "the war is not over until the soldiers are counted,"
our Thai national team did not play well or show great form, that's true.
But that doesn't mean we have to lose to Vietnam again on home soil.
The SEA Games final is a single match where anything can happen.
Remember, at the 22-23 age group in Southeast Asia, the standards across nations are quite close.
It depends on the coach's intelligence in planning strategy, tactics, and player selection.
Who fits best on that particular match day will have the edge.
I hope on Thursday, 18 Dec, everything will favor “Coach Wang.”
I admit the Vietnamese players have been fresher and better so far.
But in the final analysis, I confidently predict without fear of being wrong that
the SEA Games gold medal
will belong to Thailand!!!
Bee Bangpakong
joggingboy_be@yahoo.com