PETALING JAYA: Kuala Lumpur defender Giancarlo Gallifuoco and Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) striker Bergson da Silva will have to wait a little bit longer to represent Harimau Malaya.
The duo were not included in the 28-man squad named by national team head coach Peter Cklamovski for the 2027 Asian Cup qualifier against Vietnam on March 31, despite earlier indications that they were close to obtaining citizenship.
Instead, Cklamovski has opted to bring in several new faces and recall a few familiar names.
Defenders Feroz Baharudin and Syahmi Safari return to the national set-up after being away for some time, while Under-23 development goalkeeper Haziq Aiman has also earned a call-up.
On the attacking end, Cklamovski has entrusted Faisal Halim, alongside Luqman Hakim, Paulo Josue, Ramadhan Saifullah, and Safawi Rasid.
However, he has to do without the services of seven players, namely Facundo Garces, Rodrigo Holgado, Imanol Machuca, Joao Figueiredo, Gabriel Palmero, Jon Irazabal, and Hector Hevel, who are banned for 12 months by FIFA for falsifying eligibility documents.
Malaysia’s match against Vietnam will be a matter of pride as their hopes of making the 2027 Asian Cup are virtually over after six points were deducted by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) recently.
Malaysia were found to have fielded ineligible players in two matches, their 2-0 win over Nepal on March 25 and their 4-0 victory against Vietnam on June 10 last year, and AFC has since recorded them as 0-3 defeats for Malaysia.
THE SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Azri Ghani, Haziq Nadzli, Syihan Hazmi, Haziq Aiman.
Defenders: La’vere Corbin-Ong, Daniel Ting, Declan Lambert, Dion Cools, Dominic Tan, Feroz Baharudin, Harith Haiqal, Junior Eldstal, Matthew Davies, Syahmi Safari, Quentin Cheng, Ubaidullah Shamsul, Zikri Khalili.
Midfielders: Endrick Dos Santos, Nazmi Faiz, Nooa Laine, Ryan Lambert, Sergio Aguero, Stuart Wilkin.
Attackers: Faisal Halim, Luqman Hakim, Paulo Josue, Ramadhan Saifullah, Safawi Rasid.
