Bangkok: Discussing plans to align the senior Thai national team with the U23 team during the FIFA Day period, Anthony Hudson discussed with Coach Wang the plan for the senior Thai national team to align with the U23 team during the FIFA Day in March. The meeting was led by Ekaphon Phonnavie, Secretary-General of the Association, along with Anthony Hudson, head coach of the Thai men's senior national football team, and his coaching staff, as well as Thawatchai Damrong-ongtrakul, head coach of the Thai U23 national team, and other relevant officials.

According to Thai News Agency, Anthony Hudson revealed, "The meeting with the U23 team was to discuss player selection, as the senior Thai national team, like the U23 team, has matches during FIFA Days, which might lead to some player overlap. Importantly, we discussed the concept and approach to ensure we are working together in the same direction. It's normal for two national teams to collaborate to maximize benefits for both."

"As for my plans going forward, they are to work hard and prepare my team, thoroughly studying Turkmenistan. This involves examining their culture, playing style, and character-everything about the clubs in the Turkmen league-to ensure my team gets to know them as well as possible before this match."

"Throughout the remaining approximately five weeks, every week we will have a topic and assign tasks to each coaching staff member to find the best approach. As you know, this game is very important, and our only objective is to win and qualify for the Asian Cup finals."

"Regarding this training camp, as you know, we won't be having any friendly matches. For me, this is nothing new at all. We will be simulating our opponents' gameplay as closely as possible, just like when I worked with the USA national team. The US national team did the same when they played in the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, and ultimately, they performed well in the group stage, finishing as group runners-up and advancing to the knockout stage."

"At the same time, another important issue is the number of training days. I learned this from the FIFA Day period in November, when we played a friendly against Singapore before going to Sri Lanka. There were many details involved, including physical recovery and travel, which meant we only had 2-3 times to practice and work on tactics. This time, we want more time for tactical drills to ensure the team is as prepared as possible before the crucial game."

"Of course, for this game we need the cheers and encouragement from Thai football fans. Every bit of support will empower our athletes. We invite everyone to come and cheer for the Thai national team together at Rajamangala National Stadium on March 31st, 2026. Thank you."

Coach Wang commented, "This meeting was good for helping us plan and utilize players during the FIFA Day in March. Of course, the senior Thai national team will come first during this FIFA Day due to their final Asian Cup qualifying match. We will also be playing friendly matches against other national teams to prepare for the Asian Games in March."

"Therefore, as you can see, we are ready to let them choose their players first, including those on standby. Because if we choose them and then they have injured players, we would have to solve the problem on the fly. We need to have primary and secondary plans to support each other, in order to maximize benefits for both national teams in preparing and planning carefully."

The senior Thai national team has a match scheduled for the 2027 Asian Cup qualifying round, Group D, match 6 against Turkmenistan on March 31, 2026. Meanwhile, the Thai U23 national team will have a training camp and international friendly matches during the FIFA Day in March to prepare for the Asian Games in Japan in September 2026.