DESPITE the 10-0 whacking four years ago by the United Arab Emirates, an optimistic FA of Malaysia (FAM) president Datuk Hamidin Amin has declared that Harimau Malaya will beat the Whites in tomorrow’s pre-World Cup Group G match in Bukit Jalil.
He issued this bold statement when met by reporters at the KLFA Stadium in Cheras after watching the national players in training yesterday.
“We are playing the World No 65 at home, so there is no reason to fear them.
“Every player from the goalkeeper to the strikers must give their full commitment and play to tactics.
“And I hope the fans will pack the National Stadium to the brim to not only rattle the Whites but also to boost our players’ confidence.
“I foresee Malaysia will cause an upset. I am not saying this to hype up the match. I believe in this team, and they are capable of causing major upsets.
“All teams in this group are on par. Every team have a 50-50 chance of winning matches. If we can earn our second win on Tuesday (tomorrow), we will be on the right track,” he said.
Hamidin also touched on the fracas in Thursday’s 3-2 win over Indonesia in Jakarta by stating that FAM will submit a report to Fifa tomorrow.
“It only happens when Malaysia play in Indonesia. If you ask me, I think it would be good if Fifa disallow Indonesia from hosting matches at the Gelora Bung Karno Stadium,” he added.
National coach Tan Cheng Hoe was calm despite the tough battle ahead against the UAE when replying to questions from the media yesterday.
“The UAE are one of the best teams in Asia, and they proved it by reaching the semi-finals of the Asian Cup in January. We know that their level is high, but our players are also motivated following the win over Indonesia.
“The secret behind our success is concentration and motivation. I always remind my players to ignore distractions during matches. If we can forget about the reputation of the UAE, I believe we will give them a good fight,” he said.
Cheng Hoe also believes the UAE have a slight advantage as tomorrow’s match will be their first in the pre-World Cup qualifiers.
“Yes, we know they have this advantage, so we need to step up on Tuesday. We must use our win against Indonesia as a source of motivation.
“However, it was also good that we played against Indonesia earlier as it gave me the opportunity to identify our weaknesses. I am working on solutions to correct them ahead of this match,” said Cheng Hoe.