Out of commission: Mukhairi Ajmal Mahadi was injured during Selangor’s match against Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors in the AFC Champions League Two.
PETALING JAYA: Malaysia were dealt a blow as they will not have the services of midfielders Natxo Insa of Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) and Mukhairi Ajmal Mahadi of Selangor for friendlies against Laos and India due to injuries.
Insa and Mukhairi were injured during their respective continental stage matches last week.
The 38-year-old Insa was fielded against Ulsan HD in the AFC Champions League Elite (ACLE) while Mukhairi, 23, featured against Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors in the AFC Champions League Two.
Harimau Malaya’s interim coach Pau Marti Vicente was disappointed.
“Injuries are the worst part of call-ups. The two players were assessed and picked earlier but they came back with injuries during the mid-week,” said the Spaniard before his team’s centralised training session at Wisma FAM here yesterday.
“Ajmal had to return to the club due to a slight injury while Natxo suffered cramps and it was risky to include him. He was really looking forward to playing.”
Insa’s absence will surely be felt as he was expected to be the main man in midfield, thanks to his superb performances in the ACLE.
“We all miss Natxo. He is a fantastic player. He has showed his level in Europe and Asia. I feel bad that we can’t get him to play in these friendlies.”
Vicente had to dip his hands into the standby list to replace Insa and Mukhairi with Kelantan winger Fazrul Amir Md Zaman, 24, and Kuala Lumpur midfielder Zhafri Yahya, 30.
“We have been following Fazrul for two years but never had the chance to field him.
“Zhafri has been part of the national team before but never got minutes. He deserves to play and I hope this time I can give him the first cap.”
Malaysia will play Laos at PAT Stadium, Bangkok, on Thursday before flying to India to play against the Indian team at Gachibowli, Hyderabad, on Nov 18 and Vicente hopes Malaysia will win their first away win since Nov 21, 2023.
Their last away win was a 1-0 win against Taiwan in the World Cup 2026-Asian Cup 2027 second round qualifiers.
“Two different games, two different approaches. We play Laos as part of preparation for the AFF Mitsubishi Cup and against India, it is for the Asian Cup 2027 third round qualifiers next year,” said Vicente.
“The 0-4 defeat against New Zealand in the last friendly cannot be forgotten. We need to keep that game in mind for improvement.
“We can’t control the environment during away matches. There’s the weather, stadium, facilities, food and other matters to deal with. We must overcome them.”
