KUALA LUMPUR, July 16 — Teamwork and discipline were the two important elements that were emphasised in the planning to ensure Malaysia won the 2022 Asean Football Federation (AFF) Under-19 Championship (B-19) in Indonesia.
National U-19 squad head coach, Hassan Sazali Mohd Waras said the two elements led to the success of the youngsters who tamed Laos 2-0 in the final at the Patriot Candrabhaga Stadium in Bekasi, yesterday.
Hassan Sazali , who was the assistant coach of the national squad handled by Datuk Ong Kim Swee from 2016 to 2017, said the success was not for himself but the players and all Malaysians.
“Congratulations to my players, coaching staff and team management, what we gave was the result of good teamwork between players, coaches and management.
"Our weapon tonight (last night) I can say was the discipline of the players and playing according to the game plan," he told the post-final press conference.
In the final, the goals were scored by defender Muhammad Faiz Amer Runnizar in the 14th minute and midfielder Muhammad Aliff Izwan Yuslan in the 76th minute, ensuring Malaysia won their second title in four years after first emerging as champions in 2018.
In the 2018 edition, which also took place in Indonesia, the national U-19 squad then was coached by current Kuala Lumpur City FC coach, Bojan Hodak.
Meanwhile, Hassan Sazali said the AFF U-19 Championship was a 'warm-up' competition to prepare his men to face a tougher challenge in the 2023 Asian Under-20 Cup (U-20) Qualifiers scheduled to take place in Mongolia, this September.
"So maybe success can be used as a morale booster and a more thorough preparation can be done for the team to go further at the Asian level," he said.
In the qualifying round, Malaysia are drawn in Group E with 12-time champions South Korea, Sri Lanka and the host team to grab a spot among the 10 group champions and five best runners-up to the finals scheduled for March next year.
— Bernama
