Bahrain take on hosts Malaysia today, in a high-pressure Group E match of the AFC Asian Cup 2023 Qualifiers Final Round at the Bukit Jalil National Stadium in Kuala Lumpur, that their coach predicted will be a fantastic game against a strong team.
“We’ve prepared well for this tough game,” Bahrain coach Helio Sousa, a former Portuguese international, said at a press conference yesterday. ”It promises to be a fantastic match against a strong team. Also, Malaysia are playing at home and will try to take advantage of the great atmosphere that their fans are creating for them in every game.”
Bahrain and Malaysia are both perched on top of the four-team table with three points each after the first round of matches last Wednesday. Bahrain beat Bangladesh 2-0 while Malaysia defeated Turkmenistan 3-1 to set up the mouth-watering clash today that will probably decide which team tops the group and qualifies automatically for next year’s AFC Asian Cup.
However, while Bahrain are ranked much higher in Fifa’s world rankings – 89 to Malaysia’s 154 – than their opponents, Sousa said none of that would matter when the two teams face off against each other in the 87,000-capacity stadium this evening.
“The rankings don’t correspond to the quality of the Malaysian team and its players,” he emphasised. “Also, as I said before, the support of their fans will boost Malaysia. We will have to create some strong points and look for situations we can explore. We will have to make the best of whatever opportunities we get.”
Sousa said his team would feel no pressure about being the highest-ranked team in the group and added that Bahrain wouldn’t worry, either, about the result in the other Group E match today between Bangladesh and Turkmenistan.
“I am only focused on my team,” he explained. “In a specific competition, a short one like this qualifying tournament, we focus only on winning. We don’t spend any time thinking about what could happen in other games.”
Meanwhile, in a separate press conference, Malaysia’s South Korean coach Kim Pan Gon told reporters that his team respected Bahrain ‘as one of the great teams in Asia’ but added that the home side would not be intimidated by their opponents’ higher world ranking.
“We shouldn’t be afraid of the opponents’ ranking,” he said. “We want to show them our Malaysian mental strength, the fighting spirit. We want to give pride to Malaysian football fans. That is our focus at the moment.”
Pan Gon added that his team would be looking for a win but would be happy with a draw, also.
“No team starts a game looking to be satisfied with a draw,” Sousa said in response to a reporter’s query about the Malaysian coach’s statement. “The expectation is always for a win. They’ll be going for a win, for sure. So, we’re aware of that. And we’re prepared for that.”
Bahrain and Malaysia have played each other four times in competitions between 2007 and 2013, with Bahrain winning two and the other two ending in stalemates. The last time the two sides played each other, however, was in May 2021 when Bahrain triumphed 2-0 in a friendly game.
Six teams topping their groups will qualify for the 2023 AFC Asian Cup, along with five best second-placed teams. Fourteen teams have already qualified for the tournament, which is scheduled for June next year and was due to be hosted by China but, because of a coronavirus outbreak earlier this year, will now be held in another, as yet undecided country.
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