PETALING JAYA: Daniel Ting may only have four international caps for Harimau Malaya but the defender insisted that he is not the baby of the team anymore with the presence of Romel Morales in the side for the Asian Cup which starts today in Doha, Qatar.
Daniel, who first played for Malaysia in a friendly against Hong Kong in March last year, is looking forward to winning more caps at the Asian Cup if given the trust by national coach Kim Pan-gon.
“Personally, it’s big thing for me as I’ve been in Malaysia for a long time and happy to be finally be involved in the national team,” said Daniel who plays for Sabah.
“But I’m not quite the baby in the team anymore with Romel (Morales) now in the squad.
Morales, who was born in Colombia, was the latest naturalised player who has been included in Pan-gon’s side for the Asian Cup but the striker has not played for Malaysia yet.
“The best players in the country are here and the level is high and it’s good that we have had an early preparation at venue for the Asian Cup,” said Daniel.
“I’m lucky to have known a lot of the players when I came into the team and the camaraderie has been good.”
Daniel’s morale is high after playing in the friendlies against world No. 91 Syria in Doha on Monday where Malaysia drew 2-2.
He believes the quality display has boosted the players ahead of the opening Group E match against Jordan on Monday.
“Syria are ranked higher but I actually thought we could have won the game against them. We showed that we can match that level despite the big gap in the ranking,” said Daniel.
“The friendly game (against Syria) was good to test our match fitness and the tactics we have been working on.
“The match was a good preparation as we go into the match against Jordan with confidence.”
And with Pan-gon announcing that anyone in the squad has the chance of making the first IX during the Asian Cup, Daniel will be hoping to get his first big break in Doha next week.
Malaysia will play other Group E matches against South Korea (No. 23) on Jan 25 and Bahrain (No. 86) on Jan 20.
