It won’t be a walk in the park for our futsal boys in Pattaya
PATTAYA: The Milo Malaysia futsal team will face their toughest challenge yet as they bid to win the Milo Hidup Bola Futsal Championship for a third straight time today.
The four-team friendly league will see the Malaysian Under-16 side taking on youth teams of the three Thai Futsal League outfits – Chonburi FC, Nonthaburi FC and Pattaya FC.
The one-day round-robin tournament will be held at the 500-seat Muang Pattaya 2 School Gymnasium, the home of Pattaya FC.
The 12-member Malaysian side, led by national futsal coach Chiew Chun Yong, comprise Muhd Azim Al Amin Kamaruddin, Muhd Wafiyuddin Rozilah, Mohd Aliff Iezad Mohd Bakri, Muhd Rizal Ahmad Jailani, Muhd Iqmal Ramlan, Mohd Zulkefley Abu Bakar, Muhd Adib Hamidi, Nor Huzairieen Nor Effendy, Luqman Hakim Mustaza, Nik Umar Nik Aziz, Muhaimin Izuddin Muhd Asri and Muhd Affiq Miswan.
All these players are the top performers of the Milo Hidup Bola national grand finals in Subang Jaya two weeks ago.
They were rewarded with a one-week training camp in Pattaya with the three Thai clubs in the league.
Chun Yong expects his charges to face a tough fight from their opponents.
“These three Thai teams are taking the Milo Hidup Bola very seriously,” said Chun Yong, who led Malaysia to second spots at the Kuala Lumpur SEA Games in August and AFF Futsal Champion-ship in November.
“They’re out to stop us from winning the title for the third time in a row. I was told they have been preparing for months. So, this tournament is no friendly affair.”
Chun Yong is also concerned about his team’s lack of preparation. He only conducted two training sessions with the newly-assembled squad prior to the trip.
“There’s not much I can teach them in two days. After the selection, I noticed that most of the players were still adapting to the game.”
Last year, Malaysia topped the standings with two wins and a draw.
They opened their campaign with a 1-1 draw against Nonthaburi before thumping Bangkok FC 12-0 and defeating Chonburi 3-1.