Reason to celebrate: A member of the Malaysian national team staff pours water on Pau Marti Vicente after the trophy presentation. — FAM
PETALING JAYA: Success may have come instantly for Malaysian football team interim coach Pau Marti Vicente after he guided the Harimau Malaya to Merdeka Tournament glory on Sunday but the Spaniard chose not to celebrate much.
As the players rejoiced with the trophy at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil after their 1-0 win over Lebanon in the final, Vicente was a pensive figure in the background with other things on his mind.
And he admitted that he was reflecting on what needs to be done from now on to ensure the team progress to a higher level.
“I will celebrate this success with the team but a few hours later, I have to compile a report for the FAM (Football Association of Malaysia). Much still needs to be done and this is only the beginning,’’ he said.
“We wanted to win this tournament and we won it. The players also enjoyed themselves. We have a good group of players.
‘’When I came in 2022, we came close to winning the King’s Cup in Thailand in 2022 and also the Merdeka Tournament last year. This success is special as the players really needed to win some silverware to boost their confidence.’’
Malaysia last won the Merdeka Tournament in 2013 when the Under-23 team, led by then coach Datuk Ong Kim Swee, beat Myanmar 2-0.
In the final against Lebanon, striker Romel Morales scored the solitary goal in the 32nd minute after he took advantage of a deflection off a defender to fire past Lebanese goalkeeper Mehdi Khalil.
This is the first time since 2014 that Malaysia had beaten a Middle Eastern side. In 2014, the Harimau Malaya beat Yemen 2-1 in the 2015 Asian Cup third round qualifiers.
The win over Lebanon was also encouraging for Malaysia, as the former are ranked higher at 134th in the world with the latter at 116th.
Vicente said he kept his instructions simple and motivated his players well for the final.
“I just wanted them to play their normal game and not be overawed by the occasion. It is not about three or five players, but 26. They must feel part of it. And all of them were ready to defend their badge.”
Malaysia will next play a friendly against New Zealand at the North Harbour Stadium in Auckland on Oct 14.
