PETALING JAYA: Malaysia do not intend to make a mistake by taking a weakened Thailand side lightly in the Asean Football Federation (AFF) Under-23 Championship.
The Harimau Muda hope to restore their battered pride in the third-place playoff match against the War Elephants at the Rayong Provincial Stadium today.
The team are still licking their wounds after losing 1-4 to Vietnam in the semi-finals.
Captain and centreback Ubaidullah Samsul Fazili has urged his teammates to go one better than Malaysia’s previous best outing, where they finished fourth in the 2005 edition.
“We want to make our trip worthwhile and show that we are not here for any vacation,” said the 19-year-old Terengganu player.
But Samsul knows that Thailand will be not be easy opponents despite the absence of their regular league players.
“Thailand are a strong side although they are without their top players. We just have to be focused and follow our plans,” said Samsul.
“The morale in the team is still high despite the loss to Vietnam, so we will go all out for third place.”
Ubaidullah said a third-place finish will stand them in good stead for the 2024 AFC Under-23 Asian Cup qualifiers from Sept 6-12.
Malaysia are in Group H with Thailand, Bangladesh and the Philippines, with all the matches being played in Chonburi, Thailand.
