PETALING JAYA — Harimau Malaya striker Darren Lok aims to net as many goals as possible when they take on Syria on September 6 and China three days later in two Tier 1 international friendlies in Chengdu, China.
Darren, who is of Malaysian-English parentage, believes he can achieve his aim based on coach Kim Pan-gon’s aggressive approach and with the help of his teammates.
“That’s the job of a striker. But I think that playing under coach Kim, there’s a star (chance). Look, we are aggressive and I hope that I can bring that (goals) to the national team.
“But, like I said, as a striker we focus on goals. I want to score as many goals as possible for Malaysia but, at the same time, help them (teammates) in other areas,” he told reporters on the last day of the Harimau Malaya training stint at Wisma FAM (Football Association of Malaysia) in Kelana Jaya here today.
The 31-year-old striker also expects the friendlies against the higher-ranked China and Syria to provide him with a meaningful experience.
He said it is possible for Malaysia to defeat world number 80 China and world number 94 Syria as the Harimau Malaya had defeated higher-ranked teams in the Asian Cup Qualifiers last year.
“In the Asian Cup Qualifiers, we were able to compete with teams at this level. So, I think Malaysia is now getting to that level again where we can start to compete with these countries.
“I think everyone’s excited, the fans included, to see what’s going to happen against China and Syria. As players, we’re all excited and ready to give our best,” he said.
The national players will leave for Chengdu tomorrow. — September 3, 2023