Malaysia narrowly avoided defeat ahead of the 2023 Asian Cup.

Qatar and Malaysia came from behind to draw 2-2 with Syria in their final friendly match before participating in the 2023 Asian Cup, on the evening of January 8th.

* Goals: Arif Aiman 39', Paulo Josue 78' – Pablo Sabbag 70', Ibrahim Hesar 74'.

This was a closed-door match, so neither team released information about the players used or the events on the field. Malaysia is ranked 130th in FIFA, 39 places lower than Syria. In September 2023, the two teams also drew 2-2 in an international friendly tournament organized by the Chinese Football Association.

Syria is led by Argentinian coach Hector Cuper, who previously coached Valencia, who twice finished as runners-up in the Champions League in 1999-2000 and 2000-2001. In June 2023, Cuper and Syria traveled to Vietnam for a friendly match and lost 0-1, with the only goal scored by Pham Tuan Hai.

Arif Aiman (number 12) opened the scoring for Malaysia against Syria in a closed-door friendly ahead of the 2023 Asian Cup. Photo: FAM

Malaysia is still led by South Korean coach Kim Pan-gon. He said he used all his players in the match. "We made many substitutions, especially from the 65th minute," Kim said on the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) website. "We went behind, then equalized and took the lead in the final minutes."

Coach Kim believes the Malaysian players will be full of energy as they enter Group E of the 2023 Asian Cup, facing world number 87 Jordan on January 15, number 86 Bahrain on January 20, and number 23 South Korea on January 25. Syria is considered a hypothetical opponent before Malaysia faces the two West Asian representatives.

Kim shared: "One of my strengths is having many strategies and systems for each match. We don't have as much training time as clubs, but Malaysia has a clear match plan, so we can compete anytime against any opponent."

Paulo Josue (number 17) is one of 14 players who are naturalized citizens or have Malaysian ancestry. Photo: FAM

Malaysia brought 26 players to Qatar, with 12 from Johor Darul Ta'zim – the strongest club in the domestic league. The team has two players who play abroad: captain and central defender Dion Cools of Buriram United (Thailand) and Junior Eldstal of Dewa United (Indonesia). Fourteen names on the list are naturalized players or have Malaysian ancestry.

Malaysia has participated in the Asian Cup three times but was eliminated in the group stage each time in 1976, 1980, and 2007. The team's goal is to advance beyond the group stage this time in Qatar.

Malaysia's squad for the 2023 Asian Cup

Goalkeepers (3): Azri Ghani (Kuala Lumpur City), Syihan Hazmi (Johor Darul Ta'zim – JDT), Sikh Izhan (Negeri Sembilan)

Defenders (9): Matthew Davies Shahrul Saad, Syahmi Safari La'Vere Corbin-Ong (JDT), Daniel Ting, Dominic Tan (Sabah), Junior Eldstal (Dewa United), Dion Cools (Buriram United), Khuzaimi Piee (Selangor)

Midfielders (7): Stuart Wilkin (Sabah), Endrick, Syamer Kutty Abba, Afiq Fazail, Natxo Insa (JDT), Paulo Josue (Kuala Lumpur City), Brendan Gan (Selangor)

Forwards (7): Faisal Halim (Selangor), Darren Lok (Sabah), Safawi Rasid (Terengganu), Romel Morales (Kuala Lumpur City), Arif Aiman Hanapi, Mohamadou Sumareh, Akhyar Rashid (JDT).

Hieu Luong

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