KUALA LUMPUR, June 1 — The Class A international friendly match against Nepal at the Bukit Jalil National Stadium, tomorrow will be utilised by Tan Cheng Hoe to build a formidable squad ahead of the two-legged 2022 World Cup/2023 Asian Cup Qualifier against Timor-Leste, early this month.

The 51-year-old national head coach asserted that he does not think much on the outcome of the match as he is focused on building up the best combination for the crucial tie against Timor-Leste, slated to be held at the same venue on June 7 and 11 ( both legs at the same venue).

"Tomorrow is just the test match as I’m still looking   for the best options available for the match against Timor-Leste. Based on the statistics since March, Nepal have improved a lot and we have to be cautious against them and be focused on our game,” Cheng Hoe told the pre-match press conference at the venue, here, today.

Cheng Hoe is also confident that other players would be able to fill the void left by two players — Muhammad Syahmi Safari and Mohamadou Sumareh — for the match against Nepal and Timor-Leste.

Muhammad Syahmi is down with an ankle injury while Mohamadou Sumareh was handed a four-match suspension and fined US$5,000 (RM20,894) by the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) for dissent against a match official during the AFF Suzuki Cup final second-leg match against Vietnam in Hanoi on Dec 15.

Meanwhile, national goalkeeper Farizal Marlias, who will be making his debut as captain of the Harimau Malaya against Nepal, said he wanted to prove that he is worthy of the trust placed in him.

Having just recovered from a bout of fever, Farizal was positive of a positive outcome in all three matches.

"I hope together with my teammates we will bring the team to greater heights,” said the Johor Darul Ta’zim  keeper.

Nepal’s head coach, Johan Kalin said the warm-up match against Malaysia was the best platform for him to improve the performance of the players for future matches including the 2022 World Cup/2023 Asian Cup qualifiers.

"We’re expecting a tough game against Malaysia, tomorrow, but I think this game and also the upcoming friendly match against Taiwan (on June 6) is the best way for me to improve this team to a better level,” added the 41-year-old Swede, who joined  the Nepal FA as head coach on a two-year contract since March 1. — Bernama