PETALING JAYA: Finishing in 11th place was not what head coach Yusri Che Lah had wanted for Perak last season, so he is ringing in the changes before the 2024-2025 Super League season.
Perak have already announced the arrival of five new players, with the latest signing being Adilet Kanybekov from Kyrgyzstan, who has been brought as a defensive midfielder.
The Kyrgystan Under-23 captain has joined the team along with left wingback Tommy Mawat Bada, defender Ariff Ar-Rasyid, keeper Ramadhan Hamid, and attacking midfielder Nur Azfar Fikri Azhar.
And there’s more coming.
Yusri said they will be bringing in 10 new faces, with the others, including three imports, yet to arrive.
The coach said the 21-year-old Kanybekov still has plenty of time to find his footing with the club.
“I feel 10 weeks is sufficient for him (Kanybekov) to improve his fitness and forge a better understanding with the other players,” he said.
“There will be three new foreign players but we will announce the names in due time as they still have to complete their fitness tests.
The club had also revealed that they are in talks with Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) keeper Haziq Nadzli.
Haziq, together with Ramadhan, will give Yusri an abundance of choice in the goalkeeping department after last season when they leaked 55 goals.
The new arrivals will get their chance to stretch their legs when the Bos Gaurus begin their pre-season training stint in March. Perak chief executive officer Bobie Farid Shamsuddin said the club may also head abroad for pre-season fixtures but this will be subject to the support of sponsors and stakeholders.
Yusri said the new season would bring fresh challenges as other clubs were also rebuilding their teams.
“The management have set targets for me and so now it is time to work hard to achieve them,” he said.
The new season kicks off on May 3-5.
