Young Squad Needs More Exposure - Shukor

KUALA LUMPUR, April 25 (Bernama) -- National Under-16 (U-16) head coach Shukor Adan described his team’s participation in the 2026 ASEAN Under-17 Championship as a highly meaningful learning experience for the country's young players.

While acknowledging that fan expectations were not particularly high given that Malaysia sent a squad a year younger than the age limit, Shukor noted many positive takeaways gained throughout the tournament.

“Actually, many did not place high hopes on us because we sent an under-16 team, but many lessons were learned, both positive and negative.

“All weaknesses will be improved upon, while positive aspects will be maintained as preparation for upcoming campaigns, especially the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U-17 Asian Cup Qualifiers,” he said in an audio clip shared with the media today.

Commenting on the quality of the team, Shukor admitted there was a gap between the national squad and their opponents, particularly Vietnam, in terms of physical stature and technical maturity.

According to him, Vietnam held an advantage as they are in the final stages of preparation for the 2026 U-17 Asian Cup campaign, in addition to the age difference which provided them with more experience.

He stated that the national team requires more international matches to allow players to adapt to higher competition levels ahead of the 2027 U-17 Asian Cup Qualifiers.

“We can see the gap even with just a one-year age difference. The Vietnamese players are more clinical (compared to our players), but this is the best experience for our young players to feel the pressure of playing against strong teams at the ASEAN level.

"The players now realise that international challenges can be both easy and difficult. They need to be ready because we will face even stronger opponents in the upcoming qualifiers," said the former national player.

Meanwhile, Shukor said the coaching staff will conduct a deep analysis of individual and overall team performances to ensure the national squad remains competitive in the future.

For the record, the national U-16 squad emerged as runners-up in the 2026 ASEAN U-17 Championship after losing 0-3 to Vietnam in the final in Surabaya, Indonesia, yesterday.

--BERNAMA