One for the album: (From left) National midfielder Mukhairi Ajmal, defender Daniel Ting, Etika Marketing vice-president Amy Gan, FAM deputy president Datuk S. Sivasundaram and FAM secretary general Datuk Noor Azman Rahman, striker Sergio Aguero and goalkeeper Suhaimi Hussin at the launch yesterday. — Photo by FAM
PETALING JAYA: Rightback Matthew Davies will be banking on home advantage to overcome India in the Merdeka Tournament at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil today.
The winners will advance to the final and face Tajikistan on Oct 17.
Davies hopes the fans’ chants will spur the team.
“It has been almost a year since we last played in Bukit Jalil. We are excited. More fans, the better. They always do a great job by creating a superb atmosphere. I hope their presence will help us deliver a good result,” said Davies.
The 28-year-old Johor Darul Ta’zim player said they had done enough analysis.
“We did not know much about India but we know what to expect after our analyses,” he said.
“We’ve learnt a lot about them and have lots of respect for them. Obviously, their ranking (world No.102) does not lie.
“They are quite aggressive and love to press high, which is quite similar to our style. We have to stay solid to counter them, who are physically strong and fast.”
Malaysia however, will miss the services of midfielders Paulo Josue and Stuart Wilkin. Josue is down with dengue while Wilkin is recovering from a hamstring strain.
Head coach Kim Pan-gon said: “I’m confident that our players will deliver. We have done the game planning, tactical work and conditioning,” said Pan-gon during the pre-match press conference at Wisma FAM yesterday.
Meanwhile, the Harimau Malaya team received a boost before the game after the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) announced a partnership with Wonda Coffee.
For every purchase of Wonda Extra Shot coffee, Wonda Coffee will donate RM1 from the proceeds to send loyal fans of Harimau Malaya to support them at the 2023 Asian Cup in Qatar next year.
Last June, Wonda announced a three-year collaboration with FAM to make their presence felt in the local football scene. It is also done to ignite passion and commitment to unify the fans’ support for the national football team to achieve success on the international stage.
