Thailand (ranked 99th in the world) will have a match against Turkmenistan (ranked 142nd in the world), in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers.
In the opening match of Group D in March, Thailand beat Sri Lanka 1-0, while Turkmenistan beat Taiwan (China) 2-1 .
Although rated higher, the Thai team will not easily get a victory against Turkmenistan, when the match takes place on artificial turf.
Therefore, to prepare for this match, the "War Elephants" (Thailand's nickname) have arrived at Turkmenistan Stadium since June 7, to get acquainted with the field and climate soon.
"The artificial turf pitch will not be easy for us. It's difficult to deploy the ball on the pitch like this, because the players need more touches to control the ball," midfielder Airfan Doloh shared.
Meanwhile, Muang Thong United midfielder Kakana Khamyok said: "playing on artificial turf will cause many difficulties, because the pitch and grass are both hard.
The most important thing for us is not to underestimate the opponent. The Thai team will have to play their best because every match in this qualifying round is important.
Coach Masatada Ishii has outlined a plan for the match, so we have to try to stick with that plan.
To prepare for this match, the Thai team had a friendly match against the Indian team and won 2-0. Ben Davis and Poramet Arjvirai were the two players who scored for the Southeast Asian team.
Coach Masatada Ishii highly appreciated the Turkmenistan team. Therefore, he called up the strongest possible squad, with many familiar stars such as Chanathip Songkrasin, Supachai Chaided, Ekanit Panya...
The match between Turkmenistan and Thailand will take place at 22:00 on June 10. Thailand needs a victory to take the top spot, opening up the opportunity to qualify for the 2027 Asian Cup.
