Matthew wants to give a better performance against Timorese

BUKIT JALIL: National team’s reliable defender Matthew Davies is not going to rest on his laurels.

The swashbuckling rightback was on form in delivering two assists in the national team’s 7-1 win over Timor Leste in the first leg of the 2022 World Cup qualifier at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil last Friday.

But he is far from satisfied and vows to up the ante in the return leg against the Timorese at the National Stadium tonight.

Davies, who is of Australian-Malaysian parentage, said the national team’s attacking game suits him well.

“We play attacking game with the fullback pushing forward so it enabled me to support the team. I’m happy to help the team win matches,” said the 24-year-old Matthew.

“But I see there’s plenty of room for me to improve, in fact there’s a long list of what I need to do better actually.”

The Perth-born Davies opted to play for Malaysia when he joined Pahang in the Super League in 2015 at the age of 20 and has been a regular with the national Under-23 team.

Davies, who has earned 21 senior caps, also holds the record of being the youngest captain to lift the FA Cup at the age of 23 when Pahang beat Selangor 2-0 in 2018.

He added that having his Pahang teammates – striker Norshahrul Idlan Talaha, midfielder Nor Azam Azih, wingers Mohamadou Sumareh and Faisal Halim – in the national team have also made it easier for him.

“This squad are one of the strongest we have assembled and you can see that some of us have played for the last four to five years together, this is crucial for the development of the national team,” he said.

“The younger players must use this opportunity to be better. They should not use this as a platform to get big-headed.”