Kim Swee names provisional Asian Games squad
Seng Foo Lee
July 19, 2018 02:53 MYT
July 19, 2018 02:53 MYT
Malaysia U-23 head coach Ong Kim Swee has called up Kedah duo Baddrol Bakhtiar and Rizal Ghazali, and Johor Darul Ta'zim (JDT) defender Aidil Zafuan Abdul Radzak as overage players in his 24-man preliminary squad for the 2018 Asian Games in Indonesia.
Of the remaining 21 players, only Syafiq Ahmad (JDT), Faisal Abdul Halim (Pahang), Rodney Celvin Akwensivie (PKNS) and Khatul Anuar Jalil (Kuala Lumpur) were not part of Malaysia's historic achievement of reaching the 2018 AFC U-23 Championship quarter-finals.
He has also named six players on standby, namely Adib Zainudin (JDT II), Akhyar Rashid (Kedah), Kogileswaran Raj (Pahang), Shahrul Saad (Perak), Evan Wensley Wenceslaus (Sabah) and Syahmi Safari (Selangor).
Malaysia are in Group E alongside defending champions South Korea, Kyrgyzstan and Bahrain at the Games, which will kick off on August 14.
"After they report in for duty on July 30, we will depart for Changzhou, China, on August 2 to play a friendly match against China U-23 on August 5 and return on August 6," Ong said.
"Then we will continue the training camp at Wisma FAM and have another friendly match with Saudi Arabia U-23 in Kuala Lumpur on August 9.
"If we follow the current 2018 Asian Games schedule, we will go to Indonesia on August 12 ahead of the first match on August 14.
"The 24 players picked by me are based on their performances in the Super League and Premier League and during the previous U-23 national training camp as well as the performances of the players called up to the senior team by Tan Cheng Hoe.
"For the overage players, I see Baddrol as a versatile player and being able to play in various positions, Aidil as someone with experience and leadership to lead the defence, and Rizal can play as a right back or a right wing and is an experienced player."
The full preliminary squad is as follows:
| # | Name | Age | Team |
| 1 | Haziq Nadzli | 20 | Johor Darul Ta’zim |
| 2 | Dominic Tan | 21 | Johor Darul Ta’zim |
| 3 | Syamer Kutty Abba | 21 | Johor Darul Ta’zim |
| 4 | Safawi Rasid | 21 | Johor Darul Ta’zim |
| 5 | Adam Nor Azlin | 22 | Johor Darul Ta’zim |
| 6 | Aidil Zafuan Abdul Radzak | 31 | Johor Darul Ta’zim |
| 7 | Syafiq Ahmad | 23 | Johor Darul Ta’zim |
| 8 | Hadi Fayyadh Abdul Razak | 18 | Johor Darul Ta’zim II |
| 9 | Baddrol Bakhtiar | 30 | Kedah |
| 10 | Rizal Ghazali | 26 | Kedah |
| 11 | Ifwat Akmal Chek Kassim | 22 | Kedah |
| 12 | Matthew Davies | 23 | Pahang |
| 13 | Nor Azam Abdul Azih | 23 | Pahang |
| 14 | Faisal Abdul Halim | 20 | Pahang |
| 15 | Irfan Zakaria | 23 | Kuala Lumpur |
| 16 | Syazwan Andik Ishak | 22 | Kuala Lumpur |
| 17 | Khatul Anuar Jalil | 21 | Kuala Lumpur |
| 18 | Jafri Firdaus Chew | 21 | PKNS |
| 19 | Rodney Celvin Akwensivie | 22 | PKNS |
| 20 | Danial Amier Norhisham | 21 | Felda United |
| 21 | Nik Akif Syahiran Nik Mat | 19 | Kelantan |
| 22 | N, Thanabalan | 23 | Negeri Sembilan |
| 23 | Syazwan Zaipol Bahari | 23 | Perak |
| 24 | Tommy Mawat Bada | 22 | PJ Rangers |