PETALING JAYA: National coach Kim Pan-gon was taking no prisoners after he helped Malaysia stage one of the surprises of the Asian Cup by holding his home nation 3-3 in the final Group E match at the Al-Janoub Stadium on Jan 25 (Thursday).
Before the match, many critics questioned his selection and tactics after losing 0-4 to Jordan and 0-1 to Bahrain in the first two group games.
Some even questioned if he was fit to lead the national team in the foreseeable future but the draw against South Korea has strengthened his resolve and he was certainly in the mood to quash his critics with his post-match comments.
"You want to put me out and now you're asking how I motivated the players," he retorted when a journalist asked how he motivated his boys to come back.
"This is what we have done, always. We group together, we are like a family.
"I always said, we need to provide the best service to the players, especially the environment. This is our job. We maximise the players by motivating them.
"But you never see these aspects. You want to hit me, you want to send me out. You cannot do this. One day you hit me, one day you praise me.
"I want to congratulate the players, fans, clubs and the Malaysian government for always backing Harimau Malaya."
Malaysia ended their Asian Cup campaign by finishing last with one point.
But the draw against South Korea has been hailed by many as Malaysia, ranked No. 130 in the world humbled a side that's ranked No. 24.
