Golden boy: Selangor’s Faisal Halim celebrating after scoring a hattrick against Kelantan during their Super League match. — Bernama
PETALING JAYA: National team head coach Peter Cklamovski showed he has an eye for detail – as he spotted the hunger in Faisal Halim and that led him to call the nifty striker for centralised training.
Faisal is one of the 27 players named for Harimau Malaya’s training camp ahead of their 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers fixture against Nepal on March 25 at the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium in Johor.
The selection is a huge step for Faisal who is eyeing to don the national colours after an acid attack that left his footballing career on the fence ten months ago.
Cklamovski knew the 27-year-old was ready to play for Malaysia as his hunger and drive never went away.
“I spoke to Faisal last week. I wanted to see his desire and mindset on the situation,” said Cklamovski.
“I looked into his eyes, and he was hungry, passionate, and ready to put on the Malaysian jersey and make Malaysians proud.
“I connected with that, and that’s why he is in the squad,” said Cklamovski after announcing the team yesterday.
On Saturday, Faisal showed that his skills were still intact when he scored a stunning hattrick in Selangor’s 7-0 win against Kelantan in the Super League.
Cklamovski added that Faisal had the right characteristics needed in the team, but it was not about focusing on one player solely on the pitch.
“He has the profile of a player who wants to keep going forward. He is a positive and exciting player on the field.
“Like him, and many others, they have that attribute that I want to bring to life. And it’s to do that as a team and not just one player.
“Our strength will be with 11 players being a strong team in attack, defence, and in set plays,” he said.
The squad will be training for eight days in Johor Baru starting on Monday.
Meanwhile, Cklamovski also confirmed that three heritage players will be arriving next week, as their paperwork was nearing completion.
“The process of the heritage players is in the final stages, I think positive news will come next week,” he said.
“The maximum is three players and more will come in June.
“But I wanted to say this, when the players are announced, they are Malaysian players.
“I am selecting players that will be proud, passionate, and committed to play for Malaysia,” he added.
