PETALING JAYA: National coach Dollah Salleh went to Incheon to watch six of his trainees in action for the Under-23 side at the Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea, on Wednesday.
Instead, he came away singing the praises of midfielder Gary Steven Robbat.
The 22-year-old Kedahan, who is making a comeback after a long-term knee injury, caught Dollah’s eyes in Malaysia’s 4-0 victory over Laos in their Group A match.
Dollah said the introduction of Gary at the hour mark proved to be the turning point of the game.
“I thought Gary’s presence made a big difference to the team. He gave the team a more positive approach and brought life to the game. There was more penetration and the whole team played better,” said Dollah at Wisma FAM in Kelana Jaya yesterday.
Skipper Mohd Aidil Zafuan gave Malaysia a 1-0 lead at half-time. Then, after Gary came in for Ahmad Hazwan Bakri in the second half, Malaysia scored three more goals through Mohd Norfarhan Mohd, Fandi Othman and Mohd Ferris Danial in the final 15 minutes of the game.
Dollah was in Incheon to monitor the progress of Mohd Aidil, Mohd Fadhli Shas, Zubir Othman, Fandi Othman (defence), Ahmad Hazwan Bakri and Mohd Norfarhan Mohd (strikers). The six are in the 35-player provisional list for the AFF Suzuki Cup.
Dollah said he may now consider calling up Gary for the Suzuki Cup campaign.
“I’m aware of Gary’s injury problems. I’ll make a decision after consulting with my coaching staff,” said Dollah.
The national team will play Cambodia in a friendly at the Shah Alam Stadium tomorrow (7.30pm). They are also scheduled to play Terengganu in Kuala Terengganu on Sept 24 before their final friendly against Jordan on Oct 11.
The AFF Cup is scheduled from Nov 22-Dec 20.
Malaysia are in Group B with defending champions and co-hosts Singapore and three-time champions Thailand. The fourth team will be decided from a five-team qualifying tournament, which involves Myanmar, Laos, Brunei, Timor Leste and Cambodia.
The teams in Group A are co-hosts Vietnam, the Philippines, Indonesia and the runners-up from the qualifiers.
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