Kyrgyzstan coach thrives on pressure and urges charges to be spoilers

Potential spoilers: Kyrgyzstan coach Stefan Tarkovic (left) with defender Tamirlan Kozubaev have a game plan to exploit the weaknesses of the Malaysian team. — Bernama

PETALING JAYA: Kyrgyzstan manager Stefan Tarkovic admitted that Malaysia will not be easy opponents to handle in their opening Group D match of the 2026 World Cup-2027 Asian Cup qualifiers at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil tonight.

Tarkovic said the match against Malaysia can be seen as a benchmark since he just took over the team a few months ago.“I like pressure and pressure is normal in football. This is my biggest game and this (against Malaysia) is the start of our objective to qualify for the next round,” he said at the pre-match press conference yesterday.