KUALA LUMPUR – Harimau Malaya head coach Kim Pan-gon’s task just got tougher as he lost the services of three key players for the two remaining Group D matches in the second round of the 2026 World Cup/2027 Asian Cup Qualifiers against Kyrgyzstan and Taiwan next month.
The three are wingers Arif Aiman Mohd Hanapi, Mohamad Faisal Abdul Halim, and Raul Morales, the newly-naturalised striker who scored the equaliser for Malaysia in the 3-3 draw with South Korea in the AFC Asian Cup in January.
A Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) statement today said that the trio and left-back Muhammad Azam Azmi Murad had to be dropped from the national centralised training camp, which starts on Monday (May 27), due to injuries.
Two players, Kedah Darul Aman FC on-loan hitman Syafiq Ahmad and Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) centreback Muhamad Feroz Baharudin, have earned a recall to the national training camp.
The duo are among the eight new players called up by Pan-gon, who has retained 16 of the 24 players from the squad who featured in the two group matches against Oman in March.
Penang FC left-back Muhammad Adib Abdul Ra’op stands a chance to make his international debut after being called to attend the centralised training camp while Nooa Laine, who is of Malaysian-Finnish parentage, is the sole Selangor FC player called up to the training squad.
Meanwhile, FAM confirmed that 22 more players have been placed on standby.
For the record, Mohamad Faisal, better known as Faisal Halim, has been told to take a long break following the fourth-degree burns he suffered on his body after being splashed with acid by an unknown individual at a shopping mall in Petaling Jaya on May 5.
After four matches, Malaysia, who are in third spot in Group D with six points, will take on Kyrgyzstan at the Dolen Omurzakov Stadium in Bishkek on June 6, before wrapping up their group fixtures against Taiwan at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil on June 11.
Kyrgyzstan lead the standings in Group D with nine points while Oman, also with nine points, are second with an inferior goal difference. The two teams will meet in the final group match on June 11. Taiwan prop up the standings with no points.
The national team must win both their remaining matches and hope for Oman to upset Kyrgyzstan to stand a chance to make history by advancing to the third round of the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers and earning early qualification for the 2027 Asian Cup. – May 23, 2024