Nepal Wary Of Harimau Malaya Threat Despite Absence Of Heritage Players

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 17 (Bernama) -- Nepal will not underestimate the strength and quality of the Harimau Malaya squad despite the home team missing seven of their heritage players for tomorrow's Group F match in the 2027 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup Qualifiers.

In fact, Nepal skipper Kiran Kumar Limbu, whose team lost 2-0 to Harimau Malaya in their opening Group F clash in March, is expecting another torrid time when they clash at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil tomorrow.

"Last time, they had seven heritage players and were stronger. But now, even without them, I think the local players have just as much quality. They are a strong side and play in a high-quality league here.

"But we are ready and we're not going to make the same mistakes again," the 35-year-old goalkeeper said at a press conference here today.

Kiran Kumar also believes that their recent friendly against Bangladesh helped new head coach Hari Khadka identify the starting XI to face Harimau Malaya tomorrow.

Malaysia will play their fifth Group F match against Nepal without the benefit of any friendly matches, having only undergone a centralised training camp at home.

After four matches, Malaysia top Group F with 12 points, followed by Vietnam (nine points), Laos (three points) and Nepal, who have nothing to show for after losing all four matches.

-- BERNAMA