Kim Swee happy despite draw in friendly
NATIONAL youth coach Ong Kim Swee is confident that his team will be at optimum level for next month’s AFC Under-23 Championship following the 1-1 draw with Mokpo City FC in a friendly match in South Korea on Wednesday.
Midfielder Syamer Kutty Abba netted for the national Under-23 team in the 39th minute, only for the Korean third-tier club to level through Kim Sang Wook in the 70th minute.
It was the team’s first friendly since they arrived in Korea five days ago for centralised training ahead of the AFC tournament in Jiangsu, China where they will face Iraq, Jordan and Saudi Arabia in Group C.
“The players are getting comfortable to the cold weather here and this is a good sign as we will be playing in a similar condition in China,” said Kim Swee yesterday. “Although, it is only a draw, the players showed positives in the match and I am happy with their progress.
“The players played good football in cold weather and this is not easy to achieve. They are on the right track.”
Kim Swee said he is focusing more on performance rather than results in matches in Korea.
“Mokpo like any other Korean club have quality and credibility. They gave us a very good match and my players were tested on all fronts today. We are here to work on tactics, shortcomings and performance before the AFC Under-23 Championship.”
The former international said Mokpo scored five minutes after he brought on five players in the 65th minute.
“The five — Hadi Fayyadh Abdul Razak, Raphi Azizan Mariapen, R. Kogileswaran, Akhyar Rashid and Nik Akif Syahiran Nik Mat — were still getting adjusted to play when Mokpo scored off a cross.
“This is a good lesson for the players. They need to be focused at all times during a match as lapses of concentration can affect the team,” said Kim Swee.
Kim Swee took out three more players and brought on Tommy Mawat, K. Thivandaran and Syahmi Safari in the 77th minute to test options in case of injuries.
The coach will cut three players from his 26-member squad after matches against Honam University (on Friday) and Jeonju Citizen (on Dec 28).
“It is too early to finalise my 23member team. I have two friendly matches left to evaluate the performance of my players. I cannot be finalising my squad just after five days here.
“Although, I have my preferred core, I am giving everyone equal chances to make an impression before I drop three players,” Kim Swee added.