KUALA LUMPUR: National football coach Kim Pan Gon, given a major boost by the 2-2 draw against Syria, is pinning his hopes on the team to create a surprise against China in a Tier 1 International friendly in Chengdu, China today.
The South Korean coach said his experience when leading the Hong Kong squad against China would be helpful to draw out a strategy to break down the Great Wall, although the host nation are ranked better than Malaysia.
“I have a good memory. We played against China when I was in-charge of the Hong Kong national team. I think all the time you know when we face China, we fully respect China’s level. So we are humble and approach, study well and plan well, at this moment we also study a lot about the Chinese team.
“So I’m sorry to say that I’m quite confident of tomorrow’s (Sept 9) game. I think we are much in the know about China’s tactical strategies. So hopefully tomorrow we can have a good game against China,” he said in an audio clip that was shared by the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM), yesterday.
On Wednesday, the Harimau Malaya squad ranked 136th in the Fifa World ranking, fought back from a two goal deficit to draw 2-2 against Syria, ranked 94th at the East-Town Football Park Stadium in Chengdu.
Pan Gon wants his charges to put on an aggressive display so as to prepare a formidable team to compete in the 2023 Asia Cup in Qatar early next year.
Meanwhile, Dion Cools, the pillar in the Malaysian defence hopes his team mates would rise to the occasion and put on their scoring boots to crack down the ‘great wall’.
“But like what the coaches often say, we try to look on our own performance, our own game, try to dominate the game in our way. So I think it’s more important to look on our style of playing. So this will be the most important thing for us,” he said. – BERNAMA
