Thailand's caretaker boss Sirisak Yodyardthai is set to lock horns with another Italian coaching giant, Marcello Lippi, when the War Elephants take on China in their last 16 stage clash of the Asian Cup in Al Ain on Sunday.
China lost 2-0 to Asian powerhouse South Korea led by English Premier League giants Tottenham Hotspur's star Son Heung-Min on Wednesday to finish runners-up in Group C with six points, lining up a last 16 round meeting with Thailand.
Earlier, Sirisak had come face-to-face with veteran Italian coach Alberto Zaccheroni in Thailand's last Group A game of the round robin stage with the hosts United Arab Emirates. The tussle ended in a 1-1 draw, giving the Thais second place in the group behind the UAE.
Sirisak, who took over the helm of the War Elephants when Serbian coach Milovan Rajevac was sacked after a 4-1 loss to India in the first group game last week, was on a spying mission in the stands at Abu Dhabi's Al Nahyan Stadium where South Korea tamed China.
After the match, Sirisak looked relieved that his men will be facing China -- and not the pre-tournament favourites South Korea -- in their last 16 round game.
"I watched the game at the stadium and it is a good thing that we will be meeting the Chinese," said Sirisak.
"South Korea are very strong in every position and are good at many different styles of football.
"I am not suggesting that we will have it easy against the Chinese. We'll have to prepare the team well for the game."
Sirisak added that China's main strength lied in the fitness of their players.
"They [the Chinese] prefer to use long balls so we would have to adjust our style and tactics a great deal for the match. I have a feeling that we can play a close game with the Chinese and stop them."
Thailand striker Adisak Kraisorn, who had a brace in Thailand's famous 5-1 hammering of China away in Heifei in 2013, also predicted a close contest on Sunday.
"I am quite confident we can keep it close with China," said Adisak.
"I watched them play South Korea. There are five to six players who were members of the Chinese we beat in 2013. I think this Chinese team have a good defence and are good at counter-attacking also. We would have to be careful against them.
"Our players are in high spirits at the moment. We may have some injured and suspended players, but we are ready for the match."