PETALING JAYA: The youngest in the team made the biggest impact as Malaysia broke down a strong Bangladeshi defence in the AFC Under-23 Asian Cup qualifiers at the Chonburi Stadium in Thailand on Wednesday.
Striker Aliff Izwan Yuslan, 19, unleashed a 30m shot past a hapless Bangladesh goalkeeper Mehdi Hasan Srabon in the 81st minute to give Malaysia a 1-0 lead before Fergus Tierney slotted another in the 92nd minutes to pull off their first win in the Group H.
They face the Philippines at the same venue tomorrow and another victory will surely brighten their chance to reach the final round of the Under-23 Asian Cup in Qatar next year.
Sixteen teams consisting of 11 group champions in the qualifying competition along with the four best group runners-up and hosts Qatar will qualify for the final round.
Aliff was happy with the winning start.
“I’m the youngest in this Under-23 squad at 19. That is why I am happy with this good start in this tournament,” said Aliff.
“We were looking for ways to break down their defence and finally I got the chance to do just that towards the end through a long-range shot
“We want to focus on recovering well to win against the Philippines. It will give us the confidence to face hosts Thailand in our last group match.”
The AFC Under-23 Asian Cup Finals in Qatar next year offers a slot in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
