NEW DELHI: Now that he has broken his duck, Mohd Firhan Azhaari is confident the goals will start to flow.
Firhan scored the winning goal in Malaysia’s 3-2 opening Junior World Cup Group D match against New Zealand on Friday – his first goal in more than a year for the National Juniors.
He last scored a goal for the team in the 2012 Sultan of Johor Cup against Australia.
Despite the goal drought, Firhan still made it to the senior team and was in the squad who took part in the Asia Champions Trophy in Japan in October, scoring three goals.
No wonder Firhan went as far as to describe his goal against New Zealand as “the icing on the cake”.
“In some ways, that goal has helped me regain my confidence. Yes, it was a simple goal as I was at the right place when the ball, off a penalty corner, fell at my feet,” he said.
“It’s great to have scored the winning goal. We needed the three points.
“For me, the pressure to score was there and perhaps that was why I fumbled a few attempts. But it’s all over now ... I can relax and get my game back on the right track.”
The 20-year-old is confident they can overcome South Africa Sunday and qualify for the quarter-finals.
“I think we can win ... it’s up to how well we take our chances,” said Firhan, who is employed by Tenaga Nasional and plays for them in the MHL.
“Playing in the Junior World Cup has been like a dream come true. I want to help Malaysia achieve a good placing .. even better than the previous best of a fourth placing.
“I know the target is to finish in the top six. But we believe we can do better than that.
“Winning the Junior Asia Cup in 2012 has shown us that we need not fear any team. It is now up to us. We can do it.”
And Firhan hopes to lead the way with more goals.
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