Nooa Laine holds the Merdeka Tournament trophy. - Photo by FAM
PETALING JAYA: It’s fitting that midfielder Nooa Laine was ‘‘crowned’’ man of the match after Malaysia’s 1-0 win over Lebanon in the Merdeka Tournament final at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil on Sunday.
The 21-year-old Selangor player was the lynchpin, along with Syamer Kutty Abba, as they nullified the middle department of the Middle Eastern side nicknamed the Crowns.
The industrious Laine stood out with his constant pressing, incisive passing and crucial interceptions to keep Lebanon at bay after striker Romel Morales scored for the hosts in the 33rd minute.
Social media was abuzz with praises for the Red Giant who is on loan from Finnish club SJK Seinajoki.
The reserved Laine, however, chose to deflect the attention away from himself and said the praises should go to the whole team.
“It’s nice to be the man of the match but for me, this success was a good team effort. Everyone played very well to get the win,” he said.
Though a regular with Selangor, Laine has been at the receiving end of some criticism for his inconsistent displays in the Super League and club competitions.
But he has certainly saved the best for Malaysia, much to the coach and his teammates’ delight.
“For Malaysia, under coach Pau (Marti Vicente), we try to play a bit more possessive and take our time to build up. We have no problem because we also play like this with our clubs,’’ he said.
Meanwhile, his midfield partner Syamer said it was easy playing alongside Laine.“Nooa is a good player who makes my work easier,” he said.
Syamer, 26, was also a standout in the tournament as he scored a goal and was also named man of the match in the 2-1 win over the Philippines that got Malaysia into the final.
Winning the Merdeka Tournament means a lot to him as he had lost two finals as a national player in the past.
“I lost the 2017 SEA Games final and also the AFF Suzuki Cup final in 2018. So, lifting the Merdeka Trophy was like the perfect tonic for me,” said Syamer, who is on loan at Penang from JDT.
“There are a lot of positives and negatives that we must to work on. We will be playing tougher opponents after this, so this momentum has to continue.”
