KUALA LUMPUR: The national football squad recovered from a one-goal deficit to tie Syria 2-2 in a friendly before the 2023 Asian Cup in Doha, Qatar early this morning.
In the closely-fought game at Grand Hamad Stadium, a more energetic performance in the second half was the turning point for Kim Pan Gon’s squad after Paulo Josue emerged as the hero by scoring the equaliser.
Malaysia, who dominated the first half of the match, managed to take a 1-0 lead through Arif Aiman Mohd Hanapi’s goal in the 39th minute before the first half whistle was blown.
Continuing the second half, Syria, ranked 91st in the world rose up to give fierce resistance before successfully penetrating the defence of Malaysia ranked 130th in the world twice, one each through Pablo Sabbag in the 70th minute and Ibrahim Hesar four minutes later.
However, Josue was the toast of the national camp when he scored the equalizer in the 78th minute and the result remained unchanged until the end of the game.
Malaysia previously drew 2-2 against the Qasioun Eagles in a Tier 1 international match in Chengdu, China, last September.
The result drawn early this morning thus continues to invigorate Harimau Malaya before officially starting the 2023 Asian Cup competition on January 15.
Malaysia, who ended their 42-year wait to qualify for the Asian Cup on merit, will begin their Group E campaign against Jordan on Jan 15, followed by Bahrain (Jan 20) and two-time champions South Korea on Jan 25.
Only the champions and runners-up of each group along with the four best third teams will qualify for the round of 16 in Doha.
This is Malaysia’s fourth appearance in the Asian Cup after qualifying on merit in 1976 in Iran, 1980 in Kuwait and as co-hosts in 2007 but never progressing to the last 16 of the tournament.
Visit asiancup.bernama.com for the latest news and info about the 2023 Asian Cup. – BERNAMA
