Our boys just not fit enough
Published on: Sunday, March 24, 2024
By: James Wong
MALAYSIA lost to Oman 0-2 in the World Cup Qualification AFC first round tie held at the Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex in Muscat on Thursday.
Despite the high expectation of a good showing and confidence from the fans, the team sadly struggled to perform at their best to deliver the result.
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Perhaps the players were not physically ready to face Oman whose football league is ongoing while the Malaysian league ended last year and will only commence in May.
From what I observed, our boys certainly did not look fit enough for the match and seem lethargic at times.
Oman were in control of the game from the start and they were given too much space on the ball. Our defence was too loose and not solid enough, and the positioning and covering were also suspect.
Despite the shortcoming, we managed to keep them at bay in the first half and Stuart Wilkin also had a well struck long range shot that was saved by the keeper.
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The first goal conceded in the 58th minute was due to poor defence as Corbin Ong took his eyes off Issam Al Sabhi in the box allowing him to shoot home from close range.
Ong almost redeemed himself three minutes later when his header hit the crossbar from a well taken corner kick by Faizal Halim.
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There was no doubt that we had our chances to draw level and substitute Paulo Josue did put the ball in the net 10 minutes before full time, but unfortunately it was ruled offside by the match officials.
Then another defensive mistake in the 87th minute put the result beyond doubt for the host when Muhsen Al Ghanssani scored his country’s second goal in the match.
All said and done, we are now looking forward to the return leg to be played at home against the same team on Tuesday (March 26).
I believe if the players are able to raise their fitness level and rectify the weaknesses, we may still be able to beat Oman, who are ranked 80th in world ranking especially with the home support.
However, coach Kim Pan-Gon will only have days to work his magic to ensure his players are in good shape and ready to turn the table.
At the same time, I hope some of the injured players who did not make the trip for the first leg would have recovered and could feature in the game.
No matter who the coach will line up for the home tie, all the players who are called upon for the task must give their very best.
Their hunger to win is vital and we must take advantage of playing at home.
The cheers from the fans hopefully would be a great booster for the players to put in a much better performance to get the victory.
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