Harimau Malaya: Injury Force Natxo, Mukhairi Out Of Laos, India Friendlies 

PETALING JAYA, Nov 10 (Bernama) -- The Harimau Malaya squad will be without midfielders Natxo Insa and Mukhairi Ajmal Mahadi for upcoming friendlies against Laos and India due to injuries.

Caretaker coach Pau Marti Vicente confirmed that while both players were initially expected to join today’s training session, they were dropped following injury assessments.

Johor Darul Takzim’s Natxo sustained an injury during the Asian Champions League Elite (ACLE) 2024/25 East Zone match against Ulsan HD on Nov 5, while Mukhairi, who plays for Selangor FC, was injured following the ACL2 2024/25 match against Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors on Nov 7.

“When making the list, we assess players based on performance, but these two had mid-week games, and Mukhairi was assessed this morning and there were some issues. 

“I spoke with Natxo this week; he was eager to join but after Ulsan, we decided it was too risky,” Vicente told reporters during training at Wisma FAM in Kelana Jaya.

This decision paves the way for Kuala Lumpur City FC’s Zhafri Yahya and Kelantan Darul Naim FC’s Mohamad Fazrul Amir Md Zaman, who were on standby, to join the team ahead of the friendlies against Laos in Bangkok on Nov 14 and India in Hyderabad on Nov 18.

The friendlies serve as an important test for Vicente to finalise his lineup for the ASEAN Cup in December.

-- BERNAMA