PETALING JAYA: The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) remain focused on their mission to qualify for the 2027 Asian Cup, naming a 27-man squad for the upcoming match against Nepal, despite the ongoing turmoil surrounding the Harimau Malaya squad following the suspension of seven mixed-heritage players by FIFA.
National head coach Peter Cklamovski has once again placed his trust in Cerezo Osaka defender Dion Cools to lead the national team as they aim for a fifth straight win in Group F.
Two other overseas-based players, Endrick Dos Santos of Ho Chi Minh City Police and Sergio Aguero of Kanchanaburi Power in the Thai League, have also been included.
Also catching his attention this time is Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) rightback Matthew Davies, who returns to the squad after recovering from injury.
Cklamovski has retained 24 players from the squad that faced Laos in the Asian Cup qualifiers on Oct 9 and 14, while adding one player from the Under-23 squad, Aliff Izwan Yuslan, alongside Mohd Ubaidullah Shamsul.
“He has also recalled Matthew Davies, who has recovered from injury, and brought in a new face, Ryan Lambert,” said FAM in a statement issued yesterday.
At the same time, 11 players have been placed on standby in case of any changes, including Wan Kuzain Ahmad Kamal, who plays for St. Louis City in the United States.
The match, originally scheduled to take place at Dasharath Stadium in Kathmandu on Nov 18, has been moved to the Bukit Jalil National Stadium after the venue failed to meet the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) standards.
In their previous meeting in March, Malaysia defeated Nepal 2-0 at the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium, with goals from Hector Hevel — who is now suspended – and Corbin Ong.
All 27 players will report for centralised training starting on Monday until Nov 17.
Malaysia currently lead Group F with a maximum 12 points from four matches.
