KUALA LUMPUR – Defender Mohd Shahrul Saad has been dropped from the Harimau Malaya squad for Thailand’s King’s Cup tournament in Chiang Mai, next week, due to fitness issues.
The matter was confirmed by national coach Kim Pan Gon through a statement issued by the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) today.
“Shahrul reported in for centralised training camp with the other players yesterday, but the team’s doctor and physiotherapist who monitored his health condition during these two days found that he did not have time to be fully fit ahead of the two matches in Chiang Mai.
“The coaches and medical team, who always prioritise the health and safety of the players, have agreed to release Shahrul from the central training camp this time so that he can return to the best fitness level after this,” said the South Korean coach.
Pan Gon also stated that no new players have been added to fill the void left by Shahrul.
In the absence of Shahrul, the remaining 23 players will train on in central camp at Wisma FAM, while another defender, Dion Cools will join the team in Chiang Mai this Monday.
Malaysia, ranked 148th in the world, are drawn to face Thailand (ranked 111th) on Sept 22 (Thursday), while Trinidad & Tobago (101st) will play Tajikistan (109th).
The winners of the two matches will meet in the final on Sept 25, while the losers will slug it out for third place.
Malaysia have won the cup four times, in 1972, 1976, 1977 and 1978. – Bernama
