KUALA LUMPUR: Kelantan FC head coach Rezal Zambery Yahya is of the view that the national players should be given the opportunity to train together for a longer period in preparation for any major tournament.
It is because according to the former national footballer, the Harimau Malaya squad under the guidance of new coach Kim Pan Gon showed positive changes despite only training for 10 days before competing at the FAS Tri-Nation Series in Singapore last month.
“I believe if given more time, we (observers and fans) will see the potential of the national squad rising to meet our long-drawn expectations,“ he said when met here recently.
Pan Gon’s scratch squad managed to captivate most of the local fans with a new, more aggressive approach to the game against the Philippines and Singapore in the FAS Tri-Nation friendlies.
The national team started a new era under the head coach from South Korea with great promise when they recorded a 2-0 victory over the Philippines, but failed to continue the winning momentum to lose 1-2 to Singapore.
However, the average local football fan and observers seemed sympathetic to accept defeat at the hands of the republic after all, the national team managed to put on a commendable showing especially from the tactical approach of the game.
The positive change was also acknowledged by Rezal who described the national style of play now as more exciting.
“We can see the line-up of national players has come up with a new game pattern, more dominating to bring the fight to the opposition, so it shows a lot of positive elements highlighted by the players,“ he said.
Commenting on Pan Gon’s tenacity and the high level of discipline demanded from the team, Rezal said it was an important element to build a strong squad.
He said what was refreshing was that the players were able to follow Pan Gon’s instructions and it was proven by the stronger streak shown in the two friendly matches in Singapore.
“I think this approach needs to be continued... Kim Pan Gon knows what he wants to do and most importantly in the end, a positive result emerged for the national squad,“ said Rezal.
Harimau Malaya will face a tough task in the mission to qualify for the final round of the 2023 Asian Cup in the third qualifying round of the tournament which is scheduled to take place here this June. - Bernama