The coach, born in 1981, firmly shook hands and offered words of encouragement to U22 coach Thawatchai Damrong-Ongtrakul, then spoke privately with midfielder Iklas Sanron. Afterward, he observed the remainder of the training session.

National team coach Anthony Hudson (center), accompanied by two assistants, was present at the STB Academy pitch in Bangkok to observe the U22 players' training session.

The English coach previously served as technical director for the Football Association of Thailand (FAT) before his appointment to replace coach Masatada Ishii on 22/10. He had prior experience coaching the national teams of Bahrain, New Zealand, and the United States before coming to Thailand. In his two initial matches leading the Thai national team, Hudson guided them to a 3-2 victory over Singapore in a friendly and a 4-0 defeat of Sri Lanka in the final qualifying round for the 2027 Asian Cup.

The Thai players engaged in about 15 minutes of playful activities, including flicking ears as a forfeit, in a relaxed atmosphere before the tense final match.

Following this, coach Thawatchai discussed with the entire team for approximately two minutes. The team focused on specific details for both offensive and defensive plays, as well as set pieces.

Goalkeeper Sorawat Phosaman also boasts a height of over 1.9 m. He has been playing impressively for Thailand since the U23 Southeast Asia tournament in July, showcasing excellent command of the penalty area and good reflexes.

The current Thai squad includes a player of mixed heritage, center-back Wichan Inaram. He has a Nigerian father and a Thai mother, and is also over 1.9 m tall. However, at 18 years old, Wichan is being groomed more for the future.

Thailand's path to the final included successive victories against Timor Leste (6-1) and Singapore (3-0) in the group stage, before defeating Malaysia (1-0) in the semifinal. Striker Yotsakorn Burapha, pictured here, has contributed 6 goals and is currently the leading scorer at the Games.

Born in 2005, the forward developed at the Chonburi Football Academy and is currently on loan to Singapore's Hougang United club.

Midfielder Seksan Ratree is another prominent figure from this generation. The team captain, born in 2003, trained for one year at Leicester City's Academy before returning to Buriram United. He is currently playing for Rayong in Thai League 1 on loan.

At 22 years old, Seksan has scored 6 goals in 14 matches for the national team.

Center-back Chanapach Buaphan (center) stands out with a height of 1.9 m. He plays for BG Pathum United in Thai League 1.

During the pre-match press conference this morning, the player, born in 2004, affirmed that the entire team was not worried. "We are determined to keep the men's football gold medal in Thailand," he stated.

Thailand is essentially at full strength. However, striker Chinngoen Phutonyong (in blue shirt) had to train separately this afternoon.

The final match between Thailand and Vietnam will take place at 19:30 tomorrow, 18/12, at Rajamangala Stadium.

Thailand leads with 16 SEA Games men's football gold medals, ten more than second-placed Malaysia. However, the last time Thailand won a men's football gold medal at the SEA Games was in 2017, after defeating host Malaysia. Subsequently, the team was eliminated from the group stage in 2019, then lost two finals: one to Vietnam (0-1) in 2022 and another to Indonesia (2-5, after extra time) in 2023.

Hieu Luong