ISKANDAR PUTERI: The Harimau Malaya beat Turkmenistan 1-0 in a Tier 1 international friendly that took place at the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium here last night.
This was Malaysia’s second victory over Turkmenistan after defeating ‘The Green’ squad 3-1 in Group E action of the 2023 Asian Cup Qualifiers at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil, in June last year.
Johor Darul Ta’zim winger Muhammad Akhyar Abdul Rashid emerged as the hero as he scored the winning goal in the first half.
Kim Pan Gon’s men played a slick passing game and produced some dangerous attempts starting with naturalised player Paulo Josue’s header which was saved by goalkeeper Rasul Charyyev in the 23rd minute.
Charyyev, who deserves credit for his commendable performance, once again did brilliantly to save national captain Dion Cools’ free-kick in the 26th minute, but could not stop Muhammad Akhyar, who beat the offside trap in the 29th minute to open the scoring.
Pan Gon also gave the opportunity to four players to make their debut tonight, namely Josue, Endrick Dos Santos, Mohammad Fayadh Mohd Zulkifli Amin and Muhamad Feroz Baharudin.
This is the first time the national team played at the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium. They will next face Hong Kong here on March 28. – BERNAMA
