KUALA LUMPUR – Harimau Malaya cruised into a comfortable 2-0 win against Hong Kong last night in their Tier 1 international friendly match at Sultan Ibrahim Stadium in Iskandar Puteri.
Kim Pan-gon’s men scored both goals in the first half with Muhammad Akhyar Abdul Rashid drawing first blood in the 18th minute after the Johor Darul Ta’zim player converted an assist from Mohamad Faisal Abdul Halim.
This is Akhyar’s ninth international goal after scoring the sole winner during last week’s friendly clash with Turkmenistan.
Hong Kong had a chance to equalise the score in the 34th minute. A mistake by defenders Dion Cools and Quentin Cheng gave Poon Pui Hin a clear shot at the goal, but the attempt strayed wide.
Malaysia then doubled their lead in the 41st minute with Faisal Halim dribbling past the defenders to find the back of the net.
The Selangor player ended his goal drought after feeling the pressure of not having scored this season for both club and country.
Faisal then had the chance to make it three for the national squad, but his shot in the 54th minute was just inches off target as it skimmed past the post.
The last time the two sides met was in June last year before the 2023 Asian Cup qualifiers when Malaysia also won 2-0 during a friendly match at Bukit Jalil National Stadium.
After the match, Faisal said he was relieved to have broken his dry spell as his first goal of the season was a long time coming.
“This is for my family and all those who have supported me. A few days ago I received so many messages telling me to not give up.
“I have been waiting for this moment for a long time and hope I can continue this performance for Selangor as well,” he said.
The 25-year-old added that the national squad still has work to do ahead of their Asian Cup campaign in Qatar from January 12 to February 10 next year.
“I can’t say that we are in good condition right now, there are many things that coach Pan-gon knows we need to work on.
“But today all the players gave their best performance. Playing on a good pitch also allowed us to play our best game today,” he said.
The two friendly matches were played at Sultan Ibrahim Stadium as the national stadium in Bukit Jalil is currently undergoing pitch upgrade works that are expected to be completed in October this year. – The Vibes, March 29, 2023
