Thailand vow to make Malaysia suffer
Rajevac plans to attack Tigers in second leg
Thailand aim to turn the AFF Suzuki Cup semi-final second leg into a nightmare for Malaysia when they meet at Bangkok’s Rajamangala National Stadium tonight.
The two-time defending champions were outplayed by the Malayan Tigers but were fortunate to return from Kuala Lumpur with a scoreless draw in the first leg on Saturday.
“I hope that the Malaysians have a good night’s sleep because tomorrow will be a nightmare for them.” Thailand goalkeeper Chatchai Budprom told a press conference yesterday.
“In the first leg in Malaysia, they played very well. They put us under a lot of pressure and made us feel uncomfortable.
“But tomorrow will be a different story. Since the Malaysians landed in Thailand, I think they are well aware of what they will face tomorrow.
“They will face a different atmosphere in a different venue in the land of the War Elephants.”
Thailand coach Milovan Rajevac said his men were ready for the challenge.
“We are ready. The Malaysian team had great support from their fans in the first match. We will have fantastic support in tomorrow’s match from Thai fans,” he said.
“It will be an important match for both teams because it is the last game of this semi-final. Most of the players in this team have never won the title in this tournament but every player knows very well what he has to do.
“We are well-prepared for any situation — extra time or penalty shoot-out. Our goal is to win the match and reach the final.”
The Serbian coach has been criticised for his defensive tactics but he vowed that his men will attack the Malaysians.
“In the first leg, we did not expect to play defensively but the situation at Bukit Jalil forced us to do so. Tomorrow, it will be different. We will try to score goals.”
Malaysia coach Tan Cheng Hoe looked optimistic and is hoping that his players would build on their impressive firstleg performance.
“In Malaysia, our players played one of their best matches and we hope to continue the same momentum, the same intensity and the same desire,” said Tan.
“Of course, we missed a few chances but I am confident we can do well in tomorrow’s match and get a positive result.
“We know that Thailand have had very strong offensive play in this tournament and scored 14 goals at Rajamangala. I want the players to be mentally and physically very strong and we need to be really focused for the 90 minutes to stop them scoring.
“The Thai squad are strong. Everybody is good, not only No.9 [Adisak Kraisorn], No.29 [Sanrawat Dechmitr], No.22 [Supachai Chaided] and No.14 [Nurul Sriyankem]. However, our team have a great desire and I believe we can do it together.”
Malaysia midfielder Syamer Kutty Abba said: “Myself and my teammates are confident and ready for the match. Although the result of the first game was not what we expected, we will try our best in this match.”
The winners of tonight’s game will meet either Vietnam or the Philippines in the two-legged final.
Vietnam won 2-1 in the Philippines in the semi-final first leg and will be at home in the second leg tomorrow.
Thailand are seeking a record-extending sixth Southeast Asian title.