Good vibes: Malaysia’s coach Kim Pan-gon and winger Faisal Halim give the thumbs-up sign after a press conference for their AFF Mitsubishi Cup showdown with Singapore tonight. — Bernama
PETALING JAYA: It has come to this – the Harimau Malaya must go for the kill in the Group B final match to make the semi-finals in the AFF Mitsubishi Cup at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil today.
And in their way is traditional rivals Singapore. This time the stakes are very high, making this Causeway Derby more enthralling.
In the past, matches between these two teams have been filled with great drama with emotions running high both on and off the pitch and things are not expected to change tonight.
After Singapore tied Vietnam to a scoreless draw on Friday, coach Kim Pan-gon knows that losing is not an option.
The Harimau Malaya must win to avoid being eliminated early in the tournament for the second consecutive time.
Four-time champions Singapore only need a draw to qualify.
A similar approach used against Vietnam is expected to be deployed by Singapore today, with Malaysia having to start fiercely in their hunt for early goals to put pressure on the Lions.
And winger Faisal Halim hopes to do just that – to attack and put their defenders to the sword.
Cloak and dagger stuff: Singapore coach Takayuki Nishigaya (left) appears to be secretive while talking to his midfielder M. Anumanthan Kumar during yesterday’s press conference. — Bernama
In their last meeting, Singapore won 2-1 on home ground in an international friendly match in March last year, which also saw Pan-gon losing for the first time with the Malaysian team.
But Faisal wants to look to the present.
“After the 0-3 loss to Vietnam, most of the players were down. But two days later, we were back in a good mood and are spirited to face Singapore,” said the 24-year-old winger.
“We have home ground advantage and with the support from family members and fans, I’m sure we’ll pull through.
“For the past one month, we’ve made a lot of sacrifices and we want to make sure it is worth it.”
According to Singapore coach Takayuki Nishigaya, he has instructed his players to stick to the team’s normal approach by defending as a team and attack when they have the opportunity.
“We will play accordingly, but our style will not change – we will attack as much as possible.
“This game is going to be huge. I understand Malaysia’s situation. They have to win while we just need a draw.
“However, Malaysia are good at attacking and defending; it is going to be hard for us, but we have to focus on what we have to do.”
Meanwhile, their midfielder M. Anumanthan Kumar is looking forward to the encounter.
“We’re all excited, we’re ready and we know this will be a big game. We’re excited because we grew up watching these matches.
“More important than all that, we have a clear objective to get the three points and qualify,” said the 28-year-old former Kedah player.
