Thailand shows why it is title favorite in soccer<\/p>\n
KUALA LUMPUR (Bernama): After scoring two straight wins,
\ndefending champion Thailand is clearly the hot favorite to lift
\nthe men's football title again in this edition of the SEA Games,
\nwhich for the first time is an under-23 tournament.<\/p>\n
Thailand, who showed speed and precision passing, could have
\nbeaten frontrunners Singapore by a wider margin yesterday if not
\nfor the outstanding performance of Singapore goalkeeper Lionel
\nLewis.<\/p>\n
Thailand's coach Dolez Otaka, however, played down their
\nchances, saying that at the moment he was only confident of a
\nsemifinals slot.<\/p>\n
After the 7-0 thrashing of Cambodia in its first game and the
\n1-0 win over Singapore, the Thai will play minnows Laos on Friday
\nand Myanmar on Monday to complete its fixtures in Group A.
\nThailand is expected to top the group.<\/p>\n
\"Even against Laos we have to be very careful as its number 10
\n(Nitsavong Khovn Phachansy) and number 11 (Bounvong
\nVannabovathong) are very skillful. All the Laotian players are
\nvery fit,\" Otaka said.<\/p>\n
Laos was beaten 0-4 by Singapore in its first game.<\/p>\n
Otaka was pleased with the way his team has been playing,
\nespecially hotshot striker Manit Noyvach and teenage sensation
\nTeeratep Winnothai who have been combining very well.<\/p>\n
Manit scored a hat-trick, the first in this Games, in its win
\nover Cambodia, while Teeratep scored the first goal of the
\ntournament, also against Cambodia. Teeratep was on target again
\nyesterday, scoring the winner against Singapore.<\/p>\n
\"Our upfront duo, Manit and Teeratep, combined very well and
\nalmost scored on three occasions against Singapore,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Otaka reminded his players to stay focused and not to be
\ncarried away by the two victories.<\/p>\n
When pressed further whether he was confident of taking the
\nteam to the final, he said he would rather take one match at a
\ntime.<\/p>\n
\"At the moment we are confident of a semifinals place.
\nVietnam, Indonesia and host Malaysia in the other group are about
\nthe same or stronger than Singapore,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Thailand, who has won a record nine football gold medals in
\nthe Games, including four in a row from 1993 to 1999, is now
\ngunning to equal Myanmar's record of five consecutive gold
\nmedals. Myanmar, known as Burma before, was the joint champions
\nwith Thailand in 1965, and retained the gold in 1967, 1969, 1971
\nand 1973.<\/p>\n
Singapore coach Fleming Nielsen conceded that Thailand is the
\noverwhelming favorite to lift the title again, saying that his
\nteam were lucky to be beaten only 0-1 by the Thais.<\/p>\n
\"We made a mistake in the first half by holding back which
\ngave ample space to the Thai midfield. Our offensive midfielders
\ndid not seem to exist at all in the first half.<\/p>\n
\"I am always disappointed when losing but we have to accept
\nthat the best team win,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Singapore, who is tipped to qualify for the semifinals
\nalongside Thailand from Group A, will play Cambodia on Wednesday
\nand Myanmar on Friday.<\/p>",
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