Latest news with #HarimauMalaya


New Straits Times
6 hours ago
- Sport
- New Straits Times
Malaysia say 'no friendly' to Indonesia
KUALA LUMPUR: For a change, the national football team get to say no to others. For years, Malaysia found it hard to get teams to play international friendlies against them due to the country's low world ranking. But this time, the FA of Malaysia (FAM) has reportedly turned down an invitation from the Indonesia FA (PSSI). Indonesian media reported PSSI president Erick Thohir as saying that their proposal to have a friendly with Harimau Malaya in September was turned down by FAM. "We have long missed playing against Malaysia. One opportunity was during the Fifa window in September. We extended an invitation to Malaysia. "However, perhaps the Malaysia senior team have other considerations as they are currently in the process of strengthening the squad," said Erick. He said fans, too, are eager to see a clash between these Southeast Asian rivals, who have not faced each other for some time. Their last meeting was four years ago with Indonesia beating Malaysia 4-1 in an AFF Cup match. FAM secretary-general Datuk Noor Azman Rahman confirmed that Malaysia had rejected the PSSI invitation as national head coach Peter Cklamovski has other plans for Harimau Malaya.


New Straits Times
6 hours ago
- Sport
- New Straits Times
Vietnam stay calm amid Harimau's war dance
KUALA LUMPUR: As Malaysia procure more and more naturalised players, their rivals, Vietnam are just their natural selves — staying cool. Harimau Malaya's neighbours calmly go about their training, which began at the Vietnam Youth Football Training Centre on Saturday. Malaysia's latest announcement is that Colombian-born striker Rodrigo Holgado has joined their team for the Asian Cup qualifier against Vietnam at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil on June 10. Vietnam Football Federation vice president Tran Anh Tu and general-secretary Nguyen Van Phu had met with head coach Kim Sang Sik — who guided Asean All Stars to a 1-0 win over Manchester United at Bukit Jalil on Wednesday — and their players, and talked about the importance of tactical discipline. The Vietnam team appear confident, and the country's veteran football commentator Quang Huy said that Sang Sik has a core of experienced players well-versed in their national team's playing style and tactical requirements. "I believe Vietnam can secure at least one point in this away match, then aim for victory at home in the return leg," Quang Huy reportedly said. Vietnam have brought in newly naturalised French-Vietnamese defender Cao Quang Vinh Pendant who used to play in France's Ligue 2 and former national striker Nguyen Cong Phuong after a two-year absence. Cong Phuong told the Vietnamese media: "I can feel the strong spirit and desire to contribute from everyone in the team." Vietnamese football pundits believe the limited time that Malaysia's naturalised players have spent together could affect the team's chemistry.

The Star
16 hours ago
- Sport
- The Star
Ex-chief coach Rajagobal says early to judge Cklamovski after book launch
All smiles: Datuk K. Rajagobal (left) during the launching ceremony of his book 'Inilah Saya Rajagobal' at the Kuala Lumpur International Book Festival yesterday. — Bernama KUALA LUMPUR: Former national football team head coach Datuk K. Rajagobal feels that it is still too early to evaluate current coach Peter Cklamovski's impact on Harimau Malaya. Rajagobal, however, believes that the team showed an improved performance in their 1-1 draw in the friendly against Cape Verde at the Kuala Lumpur Football Stadium in Cheras on Thursday. Although he was quick to point out that the Harimau Malaya squad still need to work hard to continue to improve, he also expressed confidence in Cklamovski, saying 'he (Cklamovski) knows what he is doing'. 'Every coach has his plans. We can see from his second game in charge (against Cape Verde), there is improvement, although they still have room to be better. 'Cklamovski knows which team they will be facing and the players he will field against Vietnam.' They will face Vietnam in the 2027 Asian Cup Qualifiers at the National Stadium on June 10. 'I can't give an evaluation now. Usually, it will take about 10 matches before one can assess if there has been an improvement or not,' he said during the media conference to launch his book titled 'Inilah Saya K. Rajagobal' (This is me, K. Rajagobal) at the Kuala Lumpur International Book Festival yesterday. In the friendly, world No. 131 Malaysia needed a 79th-minute Paulo Josue equaliser to hold world No. 72 Cape Verde to a 1-1 draw. The national team will take on Cape Verde a second time, in a closed-door friendly, at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil on Tuesday. The friendlies against Cape Verde are part of Malaysia's preparations for the crucial games against Vietnam in their second Group F match of the Asian qualifiers. Meanwhile, Rajagobal, who guided Malaysia to the gold medal in the 2009 Laos SEA Games and the 2010 AFF Suzuki Cup triumph, described his book as an effort to inspire the younger generation and serve as a medium for him to share his coaching experiences with future generations. 'The inspiration for writing this book came from my eldest son. Many legends never wrote or documented their life journeys for reference ... not just my own story, but those of other legends as well. This is my opportunity to share that struggle with the younger generation. 'I have stories about how I faced challenges and hardships that I want to share not only with sports fans but with all Malaysians. 'I felt that I had to write this to contribute something meaningful to the sports arena in the country,' said Rajagobal, who also used to coach Brunei. — Bernama

Barnama
a day ago
- Sport
- Barnama
Cklamovski's Impact On Harimau Malaya Still Too Early To Call
KUALA LUMPUR, May 31 (Bernama) -- Former national football team head coach Datuk K. Rajagobal feels that it is still too early to evaluate current coach Peter Cklamovski's impact on Harimau Malaya. Rajagobal, however, believes that the team showed an improved performance in their 1-1 draw in the friendly against Cape Verde at the Kuala Lumpur Football Stadium in Cheras on Thursday (May 29). Although he was quick to point out that the Harimau Malaya squad still need to work hard to continue to improve, he also expressed confidence in Cklamovski, saying 'he (Cklamovski) knows what he is doing'. bootstrap slideshow 'Every coach has his plans. We can see from his second game in charge (against Cape Verde), there is an improvement, although they still have room for improvement. Cklamovski knows which team they will be facing and the players he will field against Vietnam (in the 2027 Asian Cup Qualifiers on June 10) 'I can't give an evaluation now. Usually, it will take about 10 matches before one can assess if there has been an improvement or not,' he told reporters during the media conference to launch his book titled 'Inilah Saya K. Rajagobal' (This is me, K. Rajagobal) at the Kuala Lumpur International Book Festival here today. In the May 29 friendly, world number 131 Malaysia needed a 79th-minute Paulo Josue equaliser to hold world number 72 Cape Verde to a 1-1 draw. The national team will take on Cape Verde a second time, in a closed-door friendly, at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil on Tuesday (June 3). The friendlies against Cape Verde are part of Malaysia's preparations for the crucial games against Vietnam in their second Group F match of the 2027 Asian Cup Qualifiers at the National Stadium on June 10. Meanwhile, Rajagobal, who guided Malaysia to the gold medal in the 2009 Laos SEA Games and the 2010 AFF Suzuki Cup triumph, described his book as an effort to inspire the younger generation and serve as a medium for him to share his coaching experiences with future generations.


The Sun
a day ago
- Sport
- The Sun
Cklamovski's impact on Harimau Malaya still too early to call
FORMER national football team head coach Datuk K. Rajagopal feels that it is still too early to evaluate current coach Peter Cklamovski's impact on Harimau Malaya. Rajagopal, however, believes that the team showed an improved performance in their 1-1 draw in the friendly against Cape Verde at the Kuala Lumpur Football Stadium in Cheras on Thursday (May 29). Although he was quick to point out that the Harimau Malaya squad still need to work hard to continue to improve, he also expressed confidence in Cklamovski, saying 'he (Cklamovski) knows what he is doing'. 'Every coach has his plans. We can see from his second game in charge (against Cape Verde), there is an improvement, although they still have room for improvement. Cklamovski knows which team they will be facing and the players he will field against Vietnam (in the 2027 Asian Cup Qualifiers on June 10) 'I can't give an evaluation now. Usually, it will take about 10 matches before one can assess if there has been an improvement or not,' he told reporters during the media conference to launch his book titled 'Inilah Saya K. Rajagobal' (This is me, K. Rajagobal) at the Kuala Lumpur International Book Festival here today. In the May 29 friendly, world number 131 Malaysia needed a 79th-minute Paulo Josue equaliser to hold world number 72 Cape Verde to a 1-1 draw. The national team will take on Cape Verde a second time, in a closed-door friendly, at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil on Tuesday (June 3). The friendlies against Cape Verde are part of Malaysia's preparations for the crucial games against Vietnam in their second Group F match of the 2027 Asian Cup Qualifiers at the National Stadium on June 10. Meanwhile, Rajagopal, who guided Malaysia to the gold medal in the 2009 Laos SEA Games and the 2010 AFF Suzuki Cup triumph, described his book as an effort to inspire the younger generation and serve as a medium for him to share his coaching experiences with future generations. 'The inspiration for writing this book came from my eldest son. Many legends never wrote or documented their life journeys for reference... not just my own story, but those of other legends as well. This is my opportunity to share that struggle with the younger generation. 'I have stories about how I faced challenges and hardships that I want to share not only with sports fans but with all Malaysians. I felt that I had to write this to contribute something meaningful to the sports arena in the country,' said Rajagopal, who also used to coach Brunei.