The Malaysian national team coach, Kim Pan-gon, takes full responsibility for Harimau Malaya’s failure in the 2023 Asian Cup. Kim admits that all the blame deserves to be directed at him.
The Malaysian national team is certain to be eliminated from the 2023 Asian Cup after losing to Bahrain in the second match of Group E, Saturday (20/1/2024). Competing at the Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha, the Malaysian national team led by Kim Pan-gon narrowly lost 0-1 to Bahrain. The only goal in Bahrain’s victory over Malaysia was scored by Ali Madan towards the end of the match, precisely in the 90+5 minute.
It was Malaysia’s second defeat in the 2023 Asian Cup. Previously, Harimau Malaya was beaten 0-4 by Jordan in the first match. These two defeats left Malaysia stranded at the bottom of Group E and certain to be eliminated.
Malaysia’s report card got worsen because in two matches against Jordan and Bahrain they were unable to score a goal. After the match against Bahrain, Kim Pan-gon admitted responsibility for the poor performance of the Malaysian national team in the 2023 Asian Cup. Kim said that all blame deserved to be directed at him.
“No player is at fault, but this is a common problem,” said Kim Pan-gon. “Maybe as a coach, I was wrong. I expected too much. I put too many dreams on the shoulders of the players and also the fans. That’s my problem. The Malaysian Football Federation did nothing wrong. Both the players and public opinion, this is a coach’s problem,” added the South Korean tactician.
On the other hand, Kim said there were lessons the Malaysian national team could learn from the 2023 Asian Cup. “For me, Malaysia must get used to this experience. For the first time we are faced with a challenge like this, which will help the development of the players in the future. I see a strong mentality to compete and never give up. I believe everyone will come back stronger,” said Kim Pan-gon.
The Malaysian national team will still play their final Group E match against South Korea on Thursday (25/1/2024). However, whatever the outcome of the match is, it will not change the fate of Harimau Malaya, which has been confirmed to have fallen.
Malaysia is the second Southeast Asian representative confirmed to be eliminated from the 2023 Asian Cup after Vietnam. Meanwhile, the other two ASEAN representatives, namely Indonesia and Thailand, still have a chance to qualify for the last 16.
