KUALA LUMPUR: Former national player Razman Roslan has blamed Malaysia’s poorly set up offside trap for two of the goals they conceded in the 4-0 thrashing by Jordan in their 2023 Asian Cup Group E opening match at the Al Janoub Stadium in Doha last night.
He said that two of the three goals coach Kim Pan Gon’s men conceded in the first half resulted from Jordan’s strike force managing to beat the offside trap.
“Before Jordan scored their second goal through a penalty taken by Mousa Altamari in the 18th minute, it was interesting to see the position Junior Eldstal took as he tried to set up an offside trap. Skipper Matthew Davies saw that and hesitated for a moment but the Jordanian player managed to beat the offside trap and Matthew had to chase after him.
“And in his haste, he fouled the Jordan player (Yazan Alnaimat) and conceded a penalty. So, to me, the offside trap was a mistake by our backline,” he said when contacted by Bernama.
Razman said a similar incident occurred when Malaysia conceded the third goal, with Jordan beating the offside trap and Matthew again being slow to read the move of former Kedah Darul Aman FC ace Mahmoud Almardi, who comfortably took down a cross from Alnaimat to slot home in the 32nd minute.
Jordan, led by coach Hussein Ammouta, had earlier stunned Malaysia in the 12th minute for the opening goal when Almardi let fly a swerving shot from outside the box before Altamari wrapped up the scoring three minutes from time.
Former Selangor defensive stalwart Razman also admitted that the move to field the naturalised Romel Morales on the left wing instead of his favoured position as centre-forward also failed to spark the attack into life.
“I don’t blame Morales for being in the starting 11 because it’s the coach who evaluates the players. I just hope that after this, he (the coach) will reassess the need to play him out wide on the left,” he said.
Meanwhile, national football legend Datuk Zainal Abidin Hassan said world number 130 Harimau Malaya performed well below their true capabilities against world number 87 Jordan.
While admitting that Malaysia took a long time to adjust to the intensity of the game to find themselves 3-0 down at halftime, Zainal Abidin, though, praised the players for playing much better after the break.
“The players looked overawed by the occasion and had hardly settled down when they found themselves already 3-0 down. If it had been 1-0, they might have had the chance to fight back. In the second half, I saw the team had stepped up another gear but it was too late,” he said.
On Morales’ performance, he said the Colombia-born player has yet to forge an understanding with the other players since he only joined the national team last month.
The former Pahang coach also urged the Harimau Malaya to bounce back with a vengeance when they play Bahrain in a must-win game at the Jassim Bin Hammad Stadium on Saturday (Jan 20) to revive their hopes of moving into the next stage.
“Yesterday’s defeat is not the end but a useful lesson for them to work on their weaknesses. Three points is a must against Bahrain. By hook or by crook, they must get a win as they are already there (at the 2023 Asian Cup), don’t tell me we want to wait another 40 years,” he said.
After the game against Bahrain, Malaysia will complete their Group E fixture against two-time champions South Korea here on Jan 25.
This is Malaysia’s fourth appearance in the Asian Cup, having failed to get past the group stage in the previous three editions - in Iran in 1976, in Kuwait in 1980 and as joint hosts in 2007. -Bernama
