KUALA LUMPUR: Interim head coach Tan Cheng Hoe refused to hide behind a mounting absentee crisis, insisting his makeshift Harimau Malaya side must step onto the pitch believing they can compete with a physical and revamped China on Saturday.
World No. 133 Malaysia face the 96th-ranked hosts in an international friendly at the Zhaoqing New District Sports Centre Stadium at 8pm with a heavily reshuffled squad missing several key figures.
Cheng Hoe travelled to Guangdong without Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) regulars, including Arif Aiman Hanapi, due to the club’s congested schedule, before losing six Selangor players to injury on the eve of departure following Sunday’s FA Cup semi-final second leg against Kuching City.
Nooa Laine, Sikh Izhan Nazrel Sikh Azman, Ahmad Zikri Khalili, A. Selvan, Syahir Bashah and Harith Haiqal Adam Afkar were all ruled out, prompting Cheng Hoe to draft in Dominic Tan, Syafiq Ahmad, Ariff Farhan Isa, Suhaimi Husin and Safwan Mazlan as replacements.
Harimau Malaya suffered a further blow on Thursday when Kuching winger Safawi Rasid returned home to attend to family matters, leaving the squad even thinner in attack alongside the absence of injured Selangor winger Faisal Halim.
However, Cheng Hoe maintained that the missing players would not serve as an alibi and challenged his fringe and newly drafted players to seize the occasion.
“Of course, I cannot take it as an excuse that we didn’t bring our best players, we didn’t have a few key players, but I am very positive and give a chance to the other players, the opportunity for them to perform in these international matches,” he said.
“Those who are coming to the team, the new players also have their ambition, the dream to perform at the international level. The most important thing, I think after the game, the players gain the experience, gain the confidence for the journey of a national team.”
Defender Dion Cools echoed Cheng Hoe’s optimism after settling into camp in Guangdong, declaring the squad ready for the challenge.
“The welcome has been great, facilities have been good, so yeah, we are very grateful for this,” Cools said.
“We’re really looking forward to the game tomorrow. It’ll be a good game. I think all the players are fit and strong to perform well tomorrow, so we hope we can have a nice game tomorrow.”
While China enter the fixture under pressure to snap a three-match losing run without scoring following defeats to New Zealand (3-0), Palestine (5-0) and Tajikistan (1-0), Cheng Hoe warned against underestimating a side undergoing a sweeping overhaul under head coach Shao Jiayi.
“I’ve been following Chinese football for quite some time, and I know the level of football in China is much better than Malaysia,” Cheng Hoe said.
“I think Chinese football is more competitive than Malaysian football. We take this opportunity to compete against the China team.
“We know the China team have good preparation; they are qualified for the Asian Cup. We know that they have physical strength; we know they have brought in experienced players. This time, the coaches have been changed, almost half of the team.
“We have to focus on our performance against China tomorrow. At the same time, we have to be very focused, and the most important thing, I want my players to believe that we can compete against China tomorrow.”
History weighs heavily against Malaysia, who have won just once in 13 official international meetings against China, alongside four draws and eight defeats.