PETALING JAYA – The Harimau Malaya are expected to face tough teams in the Merdeka Tournament this September, according to Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) secretary-general Datuk Noor Azman Rahman.
He said the teams to be invited for the tournament would be those from Pot 1 and Pot 2 of the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers, to prepare the national squad under the guidance of Kim Pan-gon for the qualifiers.
“We will organise the Merdeka Tournament by inviting four teams, and it will be held in September. But we haven’t decided which teams yet. We will send out invitations next month.
“We will likely invite teams from Pot 1 and Pot 2 (of the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers) since we already know the unofficial Pot 1 and Pot 2 teams available on social media,” he said at a press conference after an FAM executive committee meeting at Wisma FAM here today.
Based on current rankings, Malaysia are the best team from Pot 2 along with the Philippines, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Singapore and Yemen, while Pot 1 consists of Syria, Tajikistan, Thailand, Vietnam, Lebanon and India.
Hong Kong, Taiwan, the Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal and Bangladesh fill Pot 3, while Bhutan, Laos, Pakistan and three playoff winners will be in Pot 4.
Tajikistan, India and Palestine were invited for the 2023 Merdeka Tournament, where Malaysia were defeated by Tajikistan in the final last October.
Meanwhile, FAM deputy president Datuk Yusoff Mahadi said the Harimau Malaya would also play friendlies against Pot 1 and Pot 2 teams of the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers during the international window this October.
Yusoff also praised the performance of the Harimau Malaya squad, who managed to earn 10 points in Group D despite not qualifying for the third round of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.
“It is a good result although we were not fortunate enough to reach the next stage. However, in terms of points and winning against lower-ranked teams, we did well. Drawing with Kyrgyzstan was a good achievement,” he said.
Commenting on the status of Pan-gon, Yusoff said the South Korean would continue as Malaysia head coach until the expiry of his contract next year. – June 13, 2024