FRIDAY, March 29, 2024
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The weight of foreign footballers

The weight of foreign footballers

Thailand’s failure in the Asian Games underlines a shortage of local strikers

The ongoing Asian Games have yielded a few major surprises on the football pitch. Myanmar defeated Iran, North Korean managed to beat Saudi Arabia and Bangladesh won against Qatar. Last but certainly not least, for the first time in 24 years, the Thai national team missed the knockout stage, an unexpected draw against Bangladesh proving costly.
The only consolation is that the Thais had just one really bad game. Their draw with Qatar should have been a victory. They played well but lost to Uzbekistan. Only the match against Bangladesh was poor, but it triggered an avalanche of criticism at home.
The three matches, however, featured a glaring shortcoming. In all three, the Thais found it difficult to score. While it might seem to the casual observer that they had a bad and unlucky tournament, experts see the poor Thai performance in front of the goal as an ironic outcome from the much-vaunted development of the home league.
The Thai Premier League features virtually no good native-born strikers because the top clubs have bypassed local talent to look for striking skills elsewhere. The experts say it’s no coincidence that our national teams are having goal-scoring problems at all levels. They point out that, while the popularity of the Premier League has drawn Thai youths to the field, few kids applying for playing positions want to be a striker. They aspire to fill any other position on the team, but they don’t want to compete against imported foreign strikers, who are bigger and often better skilled. 
The Thai kids know that, if their focus is developing as strikers, chances are they will not be utilised at the highest level. Hence, from the beginning, from the day they start thinking seriously about playing football, their hearts have been set on excelling in any other position. Every kid playing football wants to score goals, but when it comes to serious development and setting a realistic career aim, most have shied away from playing as the main striker. It’s almost a guarantee of avoiding relegation to secondary professional teams, which do not offer a path to international excellence. 
Football Association chairman Somyos Pumpanmuang, speaking after the Asian Games debacle, admitted that Thailand is found wanting in terms of systematic and consistent development. The comment suggests that patience is key, although the remark flew in the face of his treatment of a former Thai national coach, Kiatisuk “Zico” Senamuang.
Patience is indeed crucial. However, under current circumstances, nobody can force Thai clubs to stop employing foreigners as strikers. The onus, therefore, is on the Football Association, which is charged with setting rules and implementing policies to help develop local talent.
All talk of sending Thai players to the World Cup died down months ago, along with the short-lived optimism that the significant rise of the Thai Premier League ironically provided. What happened at the Asian Games made it clear not only that our national team can’t compete at the continental level, but also that teams less fancied have become more competitive.
So now it’s back to the drawing board to seriously consider the pros and cons of taking in foreign players. A balancing act is needed. Thailand’s players and policymakers need a clearer view of their goals.

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