Worthy fight: The Malaysian players celebrating their victory over Taiwan in their World Cup 2026 qualifying match at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil. — IZZRAFIQ ALIAS/The Star
PETALING JAYA: It was a bitter end, but the Harimau Malaya are keeping their heads high despite not making it into the third round of the World Cup 2026 qualifiers.
The national team beat Taiwan 3-1 at the Bukit Jalil National Stadium on Tuesday, but it wasn’t enough to see them through to the third round.
They finished in third place in Group D, while Oman and Kyrgyzstan advanced.
Malaysia had needed a seven-goal win while hoping that Oman would beat Kyrgyzstan. Neither happened.
Instead, Malaysia fell 0-1 behind against Taiwan in the first half before clawing back to a 3-1 win while Oman and Kyrgyzstan fought out a 1-1 draw, giving Kyrgyzstan second place with 11 points to Malaysia’s 10.
Head coach Kim Pan-gon said everyone in the squad was feeling the pain but the players had showed what they were made of when it mattered.
“We had a good chance in the qualifiers. There were mistakes in the first half and we gave away the goal.
“But we turned things around in the second half. That shows the team’s DNA where they are always fighting even when knocked down,” he said.
Playmaker Paulo Josue said that despite being knocked out, getting 10 points in the campaign was something to take away.
“In the other groups, 10 points should have been enough to qualify, but that’s something out of our control.
“All we can do now is be proud of what we have done and keep working hard for the next challenge,” he said.
Josue added that the youngsters in the team had performed well, but just like him, there was always room for improvement.
“It’s good exposure for the younger players because we can see how they have done, especially in the recent matches. They can help to keep the team’s pace up,” he said.
Meanwhile, attacking midfielder Sergio Aguero said scoring seven goals against Taiwan was a tall order, but walking away with a win was the best that the team could have done.
“Of course, we wanted to win big, but we tried our best and gave it all on the field.
“I’m glad that when I was brought in for the second half, I could make an impact on the team and outcome of the match,” he said.
