The humiliating loss to India in the Asian Cup has resulted in Thailand head coach Milovan Rajevac's sacking but the Serb was effusive in his praise for the Stephen Constantine-coached side.
Rajevac, who was sacked by Football Association of Thailand hours after India's stunning 4-1 win on Monday, said his side's opponents thoroughly deserved to take all three points.
"They (India) absolutely deserved to win the match. For us, the first half was mostly okay, even though we conceded the opening goal after a corner of our own. In the second period, India were more aggressive, and they clearly wanted the victory," Rajevac said.
"We under-performed after the break. At the start of the second half we conceded an early goal which forced us to open up a little as we tried to find an equaliser. The real problem for us was that we did not have a response to India's aggressive style of play."
The Serbian was appointed Thailand head coach in April 2017. He then signed for a two-year contract extension in February last year.
Rajevac's assistant Sirisak Yodyardthai will take over as interim head coach for the rest of the tournament, beginning with the team's group match against Bahrain on Thursday.