Young Tigers fire five past Austria in stellar start at junior World Cup

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia got their Junior World Cup campaign off to a stellar start after they thrashed Austria 5-1 in their opening match in Madurai, India, yesterday.

The Young Tigers secured the three points in Group E, and head coach Norsaiful Zaini was pleased to see the team start on the right foot against the Europeans.

“We covered their (Austria’s) strengths well. They always try for long balls and challenge us one-on-one, but we managed to cover their attempts,” said Norsaiful.

“We could see that the game went smoothly for us, and we overcame their defences well too.”

Malaysia got off to a slow start in Madurai, with the first goal only coming in the second quarter when forward Harris Iskandar converted a penalty corner in the 28th minute.

The action resumed in the final quarter after Adam Asyraf Mohd Johari extended the lead in the 47th minute, before T. Naaveennash made it three in the 55th minute.

Austria’s Julian Kaiser managed to get one for his side right after that, but Malaysia capped their win with another two goals from Danish Aiman Khairul Anuar in the final minutes of the match.

Facing Holland today in their second group stage match, Norsaiful said they will need to be careful as Holland are among the favourites at the World Cup.

“It will be a very different match against Holland. They mark man-to-man well, and we can’t put ourselves in any situation where we are outnumbered.

“We need to stay on the ball at all times and not let them slip through.

“Holland are strong, and they excel in all angles of the pitch. So we can’t give them any space,” he said.

After facing Holland today, Malaysia will play their final Group E match against England on Tuesday.