AFF Cup: Safawi unfazed by goal drought

KUALA LUMPUR: National young striker, Muhammad Safawi Rasid is not worried about his performance despite being unsuccessful as a scorer in the 2018 ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) Suzuki Cup campaign.

In the last Group A match against Myanmar last night, the Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) striker had the best chance to end his goal drought after three matches when he came face to face with Myanmar’s goalkeeper in the 81st minute but a bad finishing scuttled the close call.

For Muhammad Safawi, netting a goal would be a bonus in the game but what mattered was his contribution to the team’s victory as a member of the squad.

“I am satisfied with the match even though I did not score as we played as a team tonight to garner the three points for a semi-final berth.

“The question is, was I under pressure to find the goal. I had the chance, maybe I was a bit hasty as I was aware Myanmar’s defenders were lurking behind,” he told reporters after the match last night.

The emphatic 3-0 win over Myanmar put coach Tan Cheng Hoe’s squad through to the semi-final as runnersup of the group behind defending champions, Vietnam.

Meanwhile, commenting on last’s action, Muhammad Safawi said the excellent teamwork displayed on the pitch compared to the three earlier matches was the determining factor in defeating Myanmar.

“After we were criticised in the earlier matches, I guessed tonight we redeemed ourselves and hoped we could continue the momentum in the semifinals.

Malaysia will be facing one of the top three teams from Group B next, namely Thailand, Philippines and Singapore,” he added.

In this regard, he said the rousing support of 80,000 Harimau Malaya fans who flooded the National Stadium played a part in the victory Saturday night.