Sumareh, Afiq Fazail join Harimau Malaya training camp to face Kyrgyzstan, Taiwan

KUALA LUMPUR – Harimau Malaya chief coach Kim Pan Gon continues experimenting when making changes to his team for the Group D 2026 World Cup / 2027 Asian Cup Qualifiers against Kyrgyzstan and Taiwan, this month.

Based on the list of 25 players at the centralised training starting this Friday, the coach from South Korea made a shock move by calling naturalised player Mohamadou Sumareh who last donned the Malaysia’s jersey in Thailand King’s Cup tournament in September last year.

Pan Gon also finally acceded to pressure from fans and several local football observers by listing Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) midfielder Mohd Afiq Fazail.

Both Sumareh and Mohd Afiq who were teammates in JDT, were among five players to return to the national squad apart from Negeri Sembilan FC goalkeeper Sikh Izhan Nazrel Sikh Azman and two JDT defenders, Shahrul Saad and Muhammad Syahmi Safari.

In this regard, Pan Gon was seen as continuing his tactical approach when retaining 20 players to the centralised camp for Pestabola Merdeka 2023 last month which saw Malaysia emerging as runners-up after losing 0-2 to Tajikistan, here.

Among those retained were team captain Dion Cools, Arif Aiman Mohd Hanapi, Muhammad Safawi Rasid, Mohamad Faisal Abdul Halim, Brenda Gan, Dominic Tan, Darren Lok, Paulo Josue and Junior Eldstal.

“Two players, Syamer Kutty Abba and Nor Azam Abdul Azih could not be called up due to injuries,” according to a statement from the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) today.

Malaysia will down to clash with Kyrgyzstan at Bukit Jalil National Stadium on Nov 16 before travelling to Taipei for the second match against Taiwan on Nov 21 in the mission to qualify for the Asian Cup for the second time in a row, besides advancing further in the hunt for a slot to the World Cup.

Joining Malaysia, Kyrgyzstan and Taiwan in Group D is Oman. – BERNAMA

Here is a list of 25 players called to participate in Harimau Malaya’s centralised training camp starting this Friday:

Name Team
Ahmad Syihan Hazmi Mohamed Johor Darul Ta’zim
Matthew Davies     Johor Darul Ta’zim
La’vere Corbin Ong Johor Darul Ta’zim
Endrick Dos Santos Johor Darul Ta’zim
Arif Aiman Mohd Hanapi Johor Darul Ta’zim
Muhammad Safawi Rasid Johor Darul Ta’zim
Muhammad Akhyar Abdul Rashid Johor Darul Ta’zim
Shahrul Mohd Saad Johor Darul Ta’zim
Muhammad Syahmi Safari Johor Darul Ta’zim
Mohd Afiq Fazail Johor Darul Ta’zim
Mohamadou Sumareh Johor Darul Ta’zim
Shahrul Nazeem Zulpakar Selangor FC
Brendan Gan Selangor FC
Mohamad Faisal Abdul Halim Selangor FC
Muhammad Mukhairi Ajmal Mahadi Selangor FC
Dominic Tan Sabah FC
Stuart Wilkin Sabah FC
Darren Lok Sabah FC
Paulo Josue Kuala Lumpur City FC
Muhammad Azri Ab Ghani Kuala Lumpur City FC
Muhammad Azam Azmi Murad Terengganu FC
Sikh Izhan Nazrel Sikh Azman Negeri Sembilan FC
Dion Cools Buriram United
Junior Eldstal Dewa United FC
Nooa Laine SJK Seinajoki FC