Sharing with Thai media, Kiatisak said that if the Thai team wins the ASEAN Cup 2026, it would be great. However, if this goal is not achieved, it is not too important because in history, the "War Elephant" has been crowned 7 times in this arena - the most successful team in the region.
According to the former coach of Hoang Anh Gia Lai, the decision to choose a squad with many young players, combined with experienced factors of the Thai team at this year's ASEAN Cup is very good. He believes that young players will learn a lot from ASEAN Cup 2026 from expertise to accumulating physical foundation. This will be the foundation for them to shine and can develop further in the future.
At ASEAN Cup 2026, Thailand has won all 3 matches in Group B and almost has a ticket to the semi-finals. Coach Anthony Hudson has done his job well, but to win the championship, the team will have to compete fiercely with other opponents. Before the tournament started, Mr. Hudson emphasized that Thailand is not the brightest candidate in this year's tournament.
More important than ASEAN Cup 2026 according to Kiatisak is that the Thai Football Federation needs to prepare early for the 2030 World Cup qualifiers. He said: "The Federation must start preparing for the 2030 World Cup right from today. Or, if we prepare in 8 years, what squad will we prepare for the World Cup? People want to hear this more than anything. Most importantly, don't prepare the team at the last minute.
According to Zico Thai, the Thai national team should not be compared with Japanese football but should develop its own model of Thai football, towards the future. He emphasized that the Federation needs to maximize the use of local coaches with degrees and currently not working at clubs, build a standard training system nationwide, and build successor national teams such as U20, U17 in a very systematic way.
Kiatisak was born in 1973, has made 131 appearances for the national team, scoring 71 goals. He is considered one of the best players in Thai football history. In the ASEAN Cup arena, he has won 3 times as a player. When he became coach of the Thai national team, he also helped the team win 2 times in 2014, 2016.
This strategist used to play in Vietnam for Hoang Anh Gia Lai. From 2020-2023, he returned to lead the team at the invitation of Bau Duc. After leaving the Hanoi Police team in 2024, he has not returned to coaching work.
