HARIMAU Malaya fans were stunned when the national team was thrashed 0-4 by Jordan in the opening Group E tie of the Asian Cup 2023 at the Al Janoub Stadium in Doha, Qatar on Monday.
A lot of fingers are now pointing at South Korean coach Kim Pan-gon and many fans are of the opinion that he had fielded the wrong lineup against the Jordanians, who are deemed the least strongest of Malaysia’s three Group E opponents.
Pan has been with the new look national team for quite a while now. I am sure he knows the capability of the players and perhaps he thought that it was a good lineup for the opening game even though many disagreed.
Malaysia qualified for the Asian Cup on merit after a lapse of more than 40 years and obviously the thought of our country competing against the best in Asia again after such a long time had the fans getting real excited.