KUALA LUMPUR – National team head coach Kim Pan-gon pledges to turn Bukit Jalil Stadium, the home of Harimau Malaya, into a fortress ahead of the upcoming Merdeka Tournament.
The 54-year-old South Korean expressed an ambition to win the tournament, while demanding support from all his players to achieve this goal.
“As the head coach of this team, I aim to lead Harimau Malaya to become the champions of this tournament.
“We have a group of talented players, and I see a lot of potential in them to clinch the title and ensure we achieve this goal.
“To achieve this, I demand a winning mentality from my players, and we aim to turn our national stadium into a fortress.
“Anyone who enters our fortress, I want to kill them with our gameplay,” Pan-gon said.
The coach also said that his team will use the Merdeka Tournament as a warm-up for next year’s AFC Asian Cup in Qatar.
“This is a very historical tournament, and I used to watch the South Korean team play during my childhood. South Korea has lost to Malaysia on several occasions in the past.
“After our last two friendlies against Syria and China, now my players have the confidence that they can play and do better, and we will use this Merdeka Tournament as a platform to push ourselves and improve.
“We are working hard to reach our aim to reach the top 100 in the world rankings,” Pan-gon added.
Meanwhile, former national team captain Zainal Abidin Hassan believes that India will be a threat to Harimau Malaya in the Merdeka Tournament due to their impressive gameplay.
“India has improved in terms of the players’ tactical knowledge of the game, and they are making their presence stronger in Asian Football under the tutelage of Igor Štimac.
“They are really good with their aggressive style of gameplay, and I believe that our current squad is lacking in this aspect. We need to work on this if we hope to become the champions of this tournament.
“However, I’m impressed with Pan-gon’s philosophy, and it’s good to see how he has now figured out his back four. I’m also impressed with goalkeeper Syihan Hazmi’s current form. I hope for the best for Harimau Malaya,” said Zainal, who won 116 caps and scored 50 goals for Malaysia.
The iconic Merdeka Tournament, which began in 1957, has attracted renowned footballers over the years, including Datuk Mokhtar Dahari, Datuk Soh Chin Ann, Tan Sri Ghani Minhat, South Korea’s Kim Jae-han, Cha Bum-kun, and Lee Woon-jae, Japan’s Kunishige Kamamoto and Yasuhiko Okudera, Indonesia’s Abdul Kadir, Iraq’s Hussein Saeed Mohammed, and Ghana’s Abedi Ayew.
Entering its 42nd edition, the tournament has attracted teams like South Korea, Buenos Aires XI, Hamburger SV, Hong Kong League XI, New Zealand, Sao Paulo XI, Ghana, and Algeria.
This year, the Pestabola Merdeka will also involve teams such as Palestine, India, and Tajikistan, and the tournament is set to take place from October 13 to 17 at Bukit Jalil National Stadium. – October 2, 2023