Muang Thong, Sukhothai vow all-out efforts
Two sides clash for Cup honours tomorrow
>> Thai League winners SCG Muang Thong United are ready to take on FA Cup champions Sukhothai in the oneoff Thailand Champions Cup battle at Supachalasai Stadium tomorrow.
The match will start at 7pm and will be live on TrueSport HD 3 and TrueSport 2.
The Thailand Champions Cup was previously known as the King’s Trophy and the match is the curtainraiser of the new football season in the country.
Muang Thong were beaten 3-1 by bitter foes Buriram United in the last year’s King’s Trophy match which was marred by some sub-standard refereeing and controversial decisions.
Addressing a pre-match press conference yesterday, Football Association of Thailand (FAT) president Pol Gen Somyot Poompunmuang lauded both Muang Thong and Sukhothai for setting up the Thailand Champions Cup clash.
Somyot said: “I am sure this match will create a great excitement among the Thai football fans.
“Apart from marking the start of the new season, the other objective of the match is to help last year’s top performers gauge their readiness for the AFC Champions League.”
Muang Thong are the only Thai club to have been granted a place in this year’s AFC Champions League.
The Kirins have been drawn in the same group as Japanese champions Kashima Antlers with the other two teams being qualifiers from the play-offs.
Thai League runners-up Bangkok United and Sukhothai as FA Cup winners are the two Thai teams in the play-offs.
The play-offs are scheduled for Jan 24 and 31 while the group phase will kick off on Feb 20-22.
Muang Thong director Ronnarit Suewaja said: “It is an honour for us to play in Thailand Champions Cup.
“We will be attempting to emerge as the winners within 90 minutes.
“We will not underestimate Sukhothai and will come fully prepared. We had a tough game against them last season when we almost lost the match before escaping with a draw.
“Our team hasn’t had as much time together as the other clubs because our key players were busy representing Thailand in the 2016 Suzuki Cup, but we are confident of our chances on Sunday [tomorrow].”
Muang Thong are at full strength, featuring Thailand internationals Teerasil Dangda, Chanathip Songkrasin, Theerathon Bunmathan, among other stars.
Sukhothai coach Somchai Makmoon said: “We are a small team and it is always difficult to play against Muang Thong as they have several quality players in their team.
“We have been training for two months and have made several changes to our team. We know that they are a strong team but we intend to play an attacking game.”
The 2017 Thai League season will kick off on Feb 11 with Muang Thong facing Bangkok Glass, five-time champions Buriram hosting Chonburi and big-spending Chiang Rai United meeting Samut Prakan.