PETALING JAYA: Being trusted to guard Malaysia’s goal during the inaugural FIFA Asean Cup has given goalkeeper Haziq Nadzli (pic) a major confidence boost as he looks ahead to future appearances on the international stage.
The 28-year-old was handed the gloves for Malaysia’s opening match against Bangladesh, and keeping a clean sheet in Malaysia’s 3-0 win was a proud achievement for Haziq.
While he admitted that the decision to field him caught him off guard, Haziq was always ready to don the national team colours.
“At first I was a little surprised when I was called upon to play in the first match, but at the same time, we are always ready,” said Haziq.
“I was lucky to play the opening match, and I gave it my all. It has helped build my confidence to performed at a high level.”
The Harimau Malaya finished third in the inaugural edition of the tournament in third place after beating Vietnam 1-0 on Monday.
The defensive line earned praise after keeping a clean sheet throughout the tournament while the team scored 10 goals at the other end.
Haziq credited the result to a strong sense of team harmony and trust, adding that the arrival of naturalised players Bergson da Silva, Brad Tapp, and Manuel Hidalgo brought a positive impact to the team.
“All the players gave it their best.
“There’s strong team unity in training and the players all believe in each other.
“The addition of the three naturalised players has also had a positive impact to the team,” he said.
Da Silva emerged as the tournament’s second-highest goalscorer after he fired four of Harimau Malaya’s 10 goals.
