Back to the drawing board: Can Harimau Malaya rise above Asian Cup qualifiers?
Another World Cup qualification near miss
MILLIONS of Malaysians' hopes of witnessing the national football team reach the World Cup Finals have once again been delayed.
The failure of the Harimau Malaya squad, led by Kim Pan-gon to secure a spot in the third round is extremely disappointing, especially given the nation's early journey to the World Cup.
The 2026 World Cup, co-hosted by the United States, Mexico, and Canada, will feature a new, more dynamic format with 48 teams, compared to 32 teams in the Qatar 2022 edition.
This new format had sparked hope among Malaysians, especially after Harimau Malaya's strong start in the Second Round of the 2026 World Cup/2027 Asian Cup Qualifiers, securing victories in the first two high-profile matches of Group D.
An extraordinary victory over Kyrgyzstan, followed by three points from Taiwan, saw the national squad needing just six more points from the remaining four matches.
These six points seemed quite attainable when Harimau Malaya held South Korea to a 3-3 draw in the final match of Group E of the 2022 Asian Cup in Qatar last January.
Goals from Faisal Halim, Arif Aiman Hanapi, and an extra-time strike from Romel Morales matched the goals of the Taeguk Warriors' stars - Jeong Woo-yeong, Lee Kang-in, and their captain, Son Heung-min.
It was a remarkable success for a country whose league clubs still face wage arrears and payment delays.
However, Oman brought Malaysia back to reality, reminding that the national football team's journey in the third round of the world football championship is still far off after defeating Pan-gon's squad in Muscat and Bukit Jalil.
This warning was actually given earlier when Malaysia lost to Jordan and Bahrain in the first two matches of Group E of the 2022 Asian Cup.
National football legend Datuk Jamal Nasir Ismail considered the national squad's failure to overcome West Asian countries as a key factor in Harimau Malaya's chances of reaching the 2026 World Cup Finals being tightly closed without having to rely on the results of matches against Kyrgyzstan and Taiwan or the mercy of other teams.
As the wise saying goes, "rely on yourself."
Jamal had earlier warned that neglecting to strengthen Pan-gon's squad preparation would lead to stagnation in the national team's progress.
This proved true when the mission to bring home three points from Kyrgyzstan ended in a draw due to an own goal by the home team.
This required Harimau Malaya to score at least eight goals against Taiwan at Bukit Jalil, but the situation was marred by issues of uprooted grass affecting Pan-gon's team preparations.
The Blue Wings' coach, Gary White, deemed such a scoreline unrealistic, especially after Harimau Malaya lost key players Arif Aiman Hanapi, Faisal Halim, Romel Morales, Darren Lok, and goalkeeper Syihan Hazmi Mohamed.
In the end, the 3-1 victory over Taiwan at the National Stadium Bukit Jalil was celebrated half-heartedly as the dream of scoring eight unanswered goals did not materialise.
Harimau Malaya's achievement of finishing third in the Second Round of the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers matched the position achieved by Tan Cheng Hoe when leading the national squad in Group G of the Second Round of the 2022 World Cup/2023 Asian Cup Qualifiers.
Harimau Malaya now returns to reality, starting from the bottom, as they face the Third Round of the 2027 Asian Cup Qualifiers next year.
Pan-gon will once again field a formidable line-up for the mission to perform in Saudi Arabia in 2027.
However, the question arises again: Does Pan-gon still need to face various complexities in preparing a strong Harimau Malaya to ensure Malaysia's regular appearance on the Asian Cup stage, rather than sporadic performances as before? Look within; ask FAM!
*Zuraimee Zainal is the Assistant Sports Editor of Sinar.
