Change of routine: Malaysia coach Kim Pan-gon (right) and his players get on the stationary bicycles. — FAM
PETALING JAYA: The Malaysian football team need to make sure their midfield engine room runs smoothly and efficiently in order to take the fight to the big guns in the Asian Cup Finals in Doha, Qatar, from Jan 12-Feb 10.
The Harimau Malaya have made their way to the showpiece Asian tournament on merit after 42 years with high hopes of making it to the last 16.
However, coach Kim Pan-gon’s outfit are among the lowest ranked teams in the tournament.
Malaysia, ranked No. 130 in the world, will kick off their Group E campaign against Jordan (No. 87) at the Al Janoub Stadium on Jan 15.
They will then take on Bahrain (No. 86) at the Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium on Jan 20 and South Korea (No. 23) at the Al Janoub Stadium on Jan 25.
Midfielder Stuart Wilkin said the team’s middle department must work well ahead of their daunting group campaign.
“I think this is the important aspect for us as we need to organise the movements, whether attacking as well as restraining the opponents,” said the 25-year-old English-Malaysian playmaker, who featured for Sabah in the Super League this year.
Defender Dion Cools controlling the ball at training. — FAM
“But I am confident the midfielders assembled for the Asian Cup this time have the ability to help the team create positive results.
“The coach has assembled an experienced and talented side for this championship.
“I think we have the ability to perform well. We have to support each other to give the best possible performance.
Apart from Stuart, Malaysia’s other key midfielders include Afiq Fazail, Natxo Insa, Endrick Dos Santos, Paulo Josue and Brendan Gan.
Stuart added that Pan-gon always reminded the players not to give too much respect to the opponents even when up against a formidable team like 2002 World Cup semi-finalists South Korea.
“Of course it will be the biggest challenge for the team but I think we are very excited to challenge ourselves against them (South Korea).
“The coach always says that we have to respect our opponents but we can’t respect them too much. So we have to fight, fight and not give them too much space,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Harimau Malaya line-up in Doha has been completed with defender Dion Cools attending the first training session yesterday.
Cools, who arrived in Doha on Tuesday, was unable to join the national team’s centralised training camp, which started on Dec 26, due to commitments to his club Buriram United in the Thai league.
The versatile defender is a key player in the squad and had scored a brace in Malaysia’s 4-3 win over Kyrgyzstan in the second round of the 2026 World Cup-2027 Asian Cup Qualifiers in November.
Cools will join forces with fellow defenders Shahrul Saad, Matthew Davies, La’vere Corbin Ong, Dominic Tan and Khuzaimi Piee in Doha.
