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Denmark's Olympic squad edged Thailand's national team 1-0 in a friendly at Rajamangala National Stadium yesterday thanks to a goal from Thomas Shultz in the last minute of the first half.

The game was quite dull in the first half. The Danish team capitalized on their height advantage and hammered the Thai team with high balls, while the local players were troubled by the Dane's well-organised defense. Thailand came close to scoring halfway through the first half when Osotspa's Phaitoon Thiabma passed from the left for striker Beckenb auer Sue-in, who unleashed a shot, but Danish keeper Jimmy Nielsen blocked it.

The local team pushed hard but Nielson saved a strong shot from midfielder Dutsakorn Thonglao from 20 yards in the 32nd minute. Soren Berg nearly made it 1-0 for Denmark three minutes later, but his curling shot was just wide and local fans breathed a sigh of relieve.

Thomas Shultz finally put his side ahead in the last minute of the first half after driving the ball through a mix-up in the Thai defence.

Captain Morten Weighorst nearly made it 2-0 for Denmark halfway through the second half, but his header was blocked by Thai keeper Pansa Meesattham before hitting the post.

The Thai side tried to equalise but were not given any room to move in the box. Terdsak Jaiman, the most valuable player in December's Tiger Cup, passed from the left for striker Manich Noivech to head in 10 minutes into the second half, but the ball went straight to the Danish keeper. After the game Thailand's national team manager Thawatchai Sajjakul said he was satisfied with his players' performance, but a bit worried about the strikers.

"We are facing some old problems with the strikers. They seemed to lose their touch and were not as sharp as they were at the Asian Games.

"However, I am satisfied with the outcome of the match. It is pretty good for a team which had only one week to play together," said Thawatchai, who added that he was also satisfied with the performances of the team's newcomers.

"We will consider the players' performances in the King's Cup to evaluate whether we will call more players or cut current players from the World Cup preparation project or not," he said.

Head coach Peter Withe also said he was satisfied with the players' performance considering the very short time they have trained together.

"Our strikers only need more time to settle. They are young and it is not strange that they can't score as their opponents are Denmark, who always have strong players and a well-organised defence," said Withe.

Denmark's head coach Morten Olsen also gave praise to the young Thai players, saying the team was very well organised and well positioned. However, he said they need to gain more experience.

Thailand's national squad is scheduled to take on Halleluya of South Korea in Mae Sot, Tak province, on February 2, and Nigeria's Olympic squad in Bangkok on February 9.

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