SEPANG – The presence of four Super League players in the main list of the national Under-22 (U-22) squad gives the confidence to head coach E. Elavarasan for the team to perform well despite being drawn in the “Group of Death” at the 2023 Cambodia SEA Games.
He said the chance of the national squad to clinch the “mother of all medals” at the biennial Games this time remains open, despite being slotted against the defending champions Vietnam and last edition’s runners-up Thailand in Group B, as all teams feature players of the same age.
“I think the chance to win remains open, and the most important thing in a team is the players.
“Based on the three days of training, I think the team is good…some players have experience in the Super League; it will give other teammates a boost,” he told reporters at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport before departing for Cambodia with the Harimau Muda squad and the national contingent chef de mission Datuk Mohd Nasir Ali.
He said that the four Super League players – Sikh Izhan, Mukhairi Ajmal, Ubaidullah Shamsul and Azam Azmi Murad – will serve as pillars for the Harimau Muda squad in this biennial tournament campaign.
He said that the Harimau Muda squad needs to instil a “must-win” mission when they visit the Prince Stadium, Phnom Penh in the first match against Laos for Group B, tomorrow to collect the first three points.
Goalkeeper Sikh said that solid understanding among players will give the Harimau Muda squad an advantage to defeat Laos tomorrow.
Meanwhile, Nasir is optimistic that all national athletes are fully prepared to meet the target of 40 gold, 37 silver and 64 bronze medals in Cambodia.
Harimau Muda will take on Laos tomorrow (May 3), Thailand (May 6), Vietnam (May 8) and finally Singapore (May 11) in the group stage.
If the team makes it through the group stage, they will play in the semi-finals on May 13 before the final or for the third and fourth place on May 16.
Malaysia last clinched the men’s football gold in the 2011 edition in Jakarta, Indonesia, in which the team defeated the hosts 4-3 on penalties after being tied at 1-1 after extra time. However, the national squad failed to repeat the feat when they fell 1-0 to Thailand in the final of the 2017 edition in Kuala Lumpur. – Bernama, May 2, 2023
