Harimau Malaya captain warns of Vietnam danger despite missing hitmen
KUALA LUMPUR: National captain Matthew Davies urged Harimau Malaya not to underestimate Vietnam despite their rivals being without two of their star forwards for Tuesday's Asian Cup Group F qualifier at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil.
Vietnam will be without naturalised Brazilian striker Nguyen Xuan Son, who has netted seven goals in five appearances, and Nguyen Cong Phuong, who has bagged 12 goals from 56 caps. Both are ruled out through injury.
But Davies insists Malaysia must stay focused on themselves rather than who Vietnam are missing.
"We need to be at our best and ready for all possibilities," said the defender at Monday's pre-match press conference.
"The biggest difference under Peter (Cklamovski) is our emphasis on team play."
"We're not thinking about the absence of their key players because Vietnam will have quality replacements. It's better we concentrate on our own preparation. We know their quality."
Davies also revealed the five new heritage players — Imanol Machuca, Rodrigo Holgado, Joao Figueiredo, Facundo Garces and Jon Irazabal — have started settling in with the rest of the squad since reporting for centralised training last week.
"There were some communication issues at first — language barriers and such," said Davies.
"But for us, wearing the jersey is a big responsibility, and we take it seriously."
"All we can ask from the new boys is that they show the same pride, love and commitment for the national team. The quality is there. They've proven themselves abroad but integration will take time."
"We shouldn't judge them any differently from any other player wearing the Malaysian jersey. What matters is they give 100 per cent."
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