Kim Swee names 27 players for training camp ahead of U-23 AFC Championship qualifiers

KUALA LUMPUR: National Under-22 (U-22) squad head coach Datuk Ong Kim Swee has named the 27 players who will join the central training camp at the Shah Alam Stadium this Sunday to prepare for the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U-23 Championship qualifying round which takes place from March 22 to 26.

The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) in a statement said players involved in Super League and Premier League matches on Sunday (March 10) were required to report on Monday (March 11).

Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) players who are involved in the Asian Champions League (ACL) match on Tuesday (12 March) will report on Wednesday (March 13), it added.

Commenting on the selection of players, FAM said Kim Swee had retained 21 of 23 players who featured in the Asean Football Federation (AFF) U-22 Championship in Phnom Penh, Cambodia last month, dropping only Nabil Hakim Bokhari and Danish Haziq Saipul Hisham.

To complete the list of 27 players, Kim Swee called on six new players including four who had featured for the national squad in the 2018 AFF Suzuki Cup, namely Syamer Kutty Abba, Akhyar Abdul Rashid, Safawi Rasid and Syahmi Safari. The two others are Danial Amir Norhisham and Faisal Abdul Halim.

The national B-22 squad will undergo seven days of training before an international friendly match against Australia’s U-22 on March 17, after which the final list of 23 players will be released.

Malaysia were drawn into Group J of the qualifiers and face Philippines on March 22 followed by Laos on March 24 and China on March 26, with all three matches held at the Shah Alam Stadium.

The winners of each group in the qualifying round (11 teams) will automatically qualify for the 2020 AFC U-23 Championship with hosts Thailand, while four/five runnersup will complete the list of 16 teams.

Malaysia made history last year by qualifying for the AFC U-23 Championship for the very first time, and made it into the quarter-final before losing 2-1 to South Korea. Full list of players called up: Muhammad Haziq Nadzli, Dominic Tan Jun Jin, Syamer Kutty Abba, Muhammad Akhyar Abdul Rashid, Muhammad Safawi Rasid, Mohamad Hariz Kamarudin (JDT), Nik Akif Syahiran Nik Mat, Muhammad Danial Haqim Draman, Muhamad Shahrul Nizam Ros Hasni, Nik Azli Nik Alias, Damien Lim Chien Khai (Kelantan).

Kogileswaran Raj, R. Dinesh, Mohamad Faisal Abdul Halim (Pahang), Muhamad Azri Ab Ghani, Ahmad Tasnim Fitri Mohd Nasir, Muhammad Danial Amier Norhisham (Felda United), Muhammad Jafri Muhammad Firdaus Chew, Ariff Ar-Rasyid Ariffin (PKNS FC).

Evan Wensley Wenceslaus, Ariusdius Jais (Sabah), Muhammad Hadi Fayyadh Abdul Razak (Fagiano Okayama) K. Thivandaran (PJ City FC), Muhammad Amirul Ashraf Ariffin (UiTM FC), Muhammad Nazirul Afif Ibrahim (Perak), Muhammad Izzan Syahmi Mustapa (Terengganu FC II) and Muhammad Syahmi Safari (Selangor). - Bernama