KUALA LUMPUR, June 5 ― National football legend Datuk Soh Chin Aun has one piece of advice for the current batch of Harimau Malaya players: Give it your everything when you are on the field and fight till the end.
Chin Aun, 70, who is popularly known as “towkay” for his tenacity and leadership on the field, said it also helps if the players are of quality and have the desire to win.
The much-feared and respected former national defender and skipper back in the 70s and 80s, who accumulated 252 international caps, said the team’s game plan would be simpler and more systematic if every player who was fielded did his part to the best of his ability.
“For me, whether we win or lose, what’s important is that we must give our best. Even if we can’t win, at least try to fight for a draw.
“We must always be alert during a game. We can attack but we must also have players ready to track back and defend because, if the opponents were to counter attack, we’ll be in big trouble,” he said when contacted by Bernama.
The Harimau Malaya squad have been slammed by fans following their dismal performance in the 4-0 loss to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) during their Group G second-round 2022 World Cup/2023 Asian Cup qualifying match at the Zabeel Stadium in Dubai on Thursday.
The fans were critical of head coach Tan Cheng Hoe’s men’s lacklustre display, with naturalised player Guilherme De Paula the main target of their displeasure after the 34-year-old Brazil-born player failed to perform up to expectations.
However, Chin Aun, who skippered the national team from 1975 to 1984, admitted that Malaysia had always found it tough playing against teams from West Asia at their home grounds, with the hot weather being the main factor.
Despite that, Chin Aun, who helped Malaysia qualify for the Olympics twice - the Munich Games in 1972 and Moscow Games in 1980 (which the team pulled out from as a protest against the Soviet Union’s invasion of Afghanistan), hoped that the Harimau Malaya would bounce back from the loss to the UAE when they take on Vietnam on June 11 and Thailand on June 15.
Chin Aun has urged the national players to stay focused on their next two Group G matches to be held at the Al Maktoum Stadium, adding that they should pay more attention to defending, which he described as the most important element throughout the 90 minutes.
“If we can defend well, we will have no problems. I always say that if we don’t score and, at the same time, don’t concede, then we haven’t lost yet. So, defending well is very important,” he said.
Malaysia are currently in fourth spot in Group G with nine points, the same as second-placed UAE and third-placed Thailand, who both have superior goal difference. Vietnam lead the standings with 11 points while Indonesia are rooted to the bottom with one point. ― Bernama
