Thailand will hope to put a dent into Japan's hopes of qualifying comfortably for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia when the two sides meet in Saitama on Tuesday.
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Japan are currently level on points with Saudi Arabia at the top of Group B and with just the two teams guaranteed automatic qualification from each group, the Asian powerhouses will know the importance of picking up points at home, particularly against teams they should be beating.
As well as Thailand have done to get to this final round of World Cup qualifying, they are seen as the weakest team in the group, shown by the fact that they have managed just one point from six matches so far.
Getting another point, like fellow South East Asian side Singapore did in the previous round of the qualifiers, is the plan for Thailand.
"We don't know if we can do what Singapore did in Japan but we will try our best," Thailand manager Kiatisuk Senamuang told ESPN FC. "We want to go for all three points, but we know it will be very difficult. To take one point back home would be a great success for us.
"We know there is a lot of expectation on Japan. It's a big game for them as they are already close to qualifying for Russia. We will work hard and if our players are on top form, it should be a very exciting match."
Japan are coming off a 2-0 win in Abu Dhabi over the UAE. It was a win they needed with Saudi Arabia doing so well in these qualifiers – Thailand were the latest team to go down to them – and with KSA expected to pick up another three points, when they host Iraq, Japan will know they cannot afford a slip-up, particularly with Australia and the United Arab Emirates, who play each other on Tuesday, breathing down their necks.
Where and when to watch live
Japan vs Thailand is set to begin at 7.35pm local time, 4.05pm IST, 5.35pm Thailand time, 11.35am BST. TV and live streaming information of the match is below.
India: No live coverage on TV.
Japan: TV: TBS.
Thailand: TV: BBTV and Fox Sports Thailand.
SouthEast Asia: TV: Fox Sports.
China: TV: PPTV Sport.
Middle East: TV: Bein Sports Arabia3. Live Streaming: Bein Sports Connect.
USA: TV: ESPN3. Live Streaming: Watch ESPN.
