Head coach of the Turkmenistan national football team Rovshan Meredov said that he is counting on the support of the fans ahead of the 2027 Asian Cup qualifying match against Thailand.

"I understand all the responsibility that lies before me. Our task is not an easy one, to solve which we will make every effort," Meredov emphasized. He noted that his team has formed a professional staff of specialists with experience playing for the national team, who share the same views on football.

The coaching staff of the Turkmen team is currently watching all the matches of the national championship to select candidates for the team. After the completion of the last games before the break, an extended roster of the national team will be announced. From June 1, the team will begin a training camp in Ashgabat to prepare for the match with Thailand.

In parallel, specialists are studying the opponent's game, analyzing video recordings of the Thailand team's matches.

"The Thailand national team is a very organized team," noted Meredov, who studied the Thais' qualifying match with Sri Lanka. According to him, the Thai team is coached by a Japanese specialist who has instilled in the players competent combination football. Among the participants who did not qualify for the World Cup and are fighting for a ticket to the Asian Cup, the Thailand national team is one of the strongest, which is confirmed by its placement in the first basket during the draw.

The coach also drew attention to the strengthening of the Sri Lankan national team: "If before it was "for beating", now it has naturalized Europeans who play competent football."

"In the fight for a ticket to the 2027 Asian Cup, no one can be underestimated. There are no obvious outsiders in the group. Each game will be like the final," R. Meredov emphasized.

The meeting of the national teams of Turkmenistan and Thailand will be held on June 10 at the Ashgabat stadium. The start of the second round of the 2027 Asian Cup qualifying round is scheduled for 20:00.

To reach the final part of the tournament, which will be held in 2027 in Saudi Arabia, the Turkmen team needs to take first place in Group D, ahead of the national teams of Thailand, Chinese Taipei and Sri Lanka.

Rovshan Meredov replaced Mergen Orazov as head coach, under whose leadership the Turkmen team won an away victory over the Chinese Taipei team with a score of 2:1 in the first round of the 2027 Asian Cup qualifying round.