Thailand head coach Milovan Rajevac felt that Timor Leste’s tactics made life easy for the War Elephants as they thrashed their opponents 7-0 in the first game of their AFF Suzuki Cup defence.

Adisak Kraisorn struck six times in the rout as the Thais repeatedly exposed the Timor Leste backline and finished off their chances clinically.

But Rajevac admitted that the way the Timorese set up to play may have done his side a few favours.

“Timor Leste played the game exactly as we wanted,” said Rajevac. “They tried to attack us and left some space in behind that we could exploit.

“Most of the goals we scored came from counter attacks and fast breaks so they made our job easier, which was reflected in the final score.”

The result came despite the absence of Thailand’s four overseas-based stars. The creative talents of Chanathip Songkrasin and the goal scoring of Teerasil Dangda were expected to be difficult to replace but the scoreline suggests otherwise.

Rajevac was delighted that his planning ensured that the impact of their absence was minimal.

“As I have said many times before, it is important to have time,” said Rajevac. “Usually, with the national team, you don’t have so many days before some of the matches. For this tournament, we had enough time to prepare and when I have time, I never have big concerns.

“You have enough time to establish your style of play, to improve the things that are necessary so that we can compete with teams and gets results. 

“I’m glad that my players proved that whoever is picked, they are up to the task and they can deliver and they know that I have full faith in all of them.”

Goal hero Adisak expressed his gratitude to Rajevac after enduring an injury-plagued two years, including eight months out with a cruciate ligament injury this year. 

“The past eight months have been tough,” said Adisak. “I lost a bit of passion for the game and sometimes felt like I wanted to quit. But lots of people kept supporting me, including my team and fans so I am grateful to them. 

“I haven’t played a lot in the league over the past two years, so I have to thank the coach for giving me this opportunity. Our target is to be the AFF Suzuki Cup champions but we are taking one game at a time.”