Football squad rocked by Buriram pullout
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National football team coach Kiatisak Senamuang says the withdrawal of two Buriram United players, Theerathon Bunmathan and Prathum Chutong, from the 20-member Asian Games squad is unfortunate but the squad is strong enough to cope with the loss.
Thailand suffered an early setback when Thai Premier League leaders Buriram United refused to release their two defenders for the Games, which begin in Incheon, South Korea, on Tuesday.
Buriram’s decision came only a day after Kiatisak announced the list. The team will travel to Phuket tomorrow for a two-week training camp and at least two warm-up matches, against Myanmar and Qatar.
Speaking at a press conference at the Football Association of Thailand headquarters and chaired by FA president Worawi Makudi, Kiatisak said he needed to talk with his backroom staff about possible replacements for the Buriram pair. The 41-year-old coach, who led the country to SEA Games glory in Myanmar last year, said replacements would be found before the team leaves for Phuket.
“By now, every club has received a letter from the association regarding the Asian Games list. But Buriram informed us that they would not release Theerathon and Prathum for the tournament. We’re going to have a discussion about possible replacements. It shouldn’t be a problem.
“We’ll play Myanmar on August 30 and Qatar on September 7 – both games are in Phuket. During our fortnight there we will be focusing on fitness and tactics. I think we have sufficient time to prepare our team,” said former national striker Kiatisak, affectionately known as Zico.
Both full-back Theerathon and central defender Prathum were selected as two of the three overage members for the under-23 competition, but Kiatisak said there was now a possibility of calling up players in other positions to take up the vacant slots.
“Actually, we had several names in mind but we selected Theerathon and Prathum because they are rock-solid as defenders. For the Asian Games we need to put our emphasis on defence. Now that the two are no longer in the list, we have to look for other players who can strengthen the team. We could call up players to bolster the squad in other areas as well,” he said.
