National coach Milovan Rajevac said yesterday his aim is to help Thailand retain the Suzuki Cup title.
The players began training for the event yesterday but many of them were absent as stars from Buriram United and Chiang Rai United will join the team after their FA Cup final clash on Saturday.
Rajevac has called up 27 players for the camp but four will be omitted before the tournament. "Our aim is to retain the Suzuki Cup,'' the Serb said.
"We are under pressure but I will try to make my players turn pressure into motivation. We will do our best."
The coach cannot select four Japan and Belgium-based players as the Southeast Asian championship falls outside Fifa international match calendar.
This means that playmaker Chanathip Songkrasin, striker Teerasil Dangda, wing-back Theerathon Bunmathan and goalkeeper Kawin Thamsatchanan will be unavailable when the Thais begin their defence of the title next month.
"We will play in the Suzuki Cup without the four but I have faith in other players. We are a team and everybody is equally important," he said.
Thailand are in Group B with Indonesia, Singapore, the Philippines and Timor Leste.
The top two teams of each of the two groups advance to the semi-finals.
Meanwhile, Somyot Poompunmuang, president of the Football Association of Thailand, said while he wants Thailand to win the Suzuki Cup, the Asian Cup in January is more important.
He said he would assess Rajevac's performance after the Asian Cup.
"We have an agreement with the coach that Thailand must fare better than they did in the past in the Asian Cup," Somyot said.
"We have never reached the last-16 round of the Asian Cup so advancing to that round is our target."