Harimau Malaya Roar To 2-1 Win Over Yemen
SHAH ALAM, March 23 (Bernama) -- Harimau Malaya roared to their first win after defeating Yemen 2-1 in the 2015 Asian Cup Qualifier in Group D at Shah Alam Stadium Friday night.
The squad under Datuk K. Rajagobal had an early shock when Aiman Saleh Abd Al-Hagri of Yemen slotted in the opening goal at the 11th minute.
Harimau Malaya in their hunt for the top two places in the group however managed to equalise through Azammudin Mohd Akil in the 26th minute who slotted home a neat pass supplied by Mahalli Jasuli.
The national squad got a golden opportunity to get ahead in the 40th minute but lethal striker Norshahrul Idlan Talaha's shot hit a Yemen player instead.
In the second half, the national squad went on the offensive but failed to penetrate Yemen's defence.
However, Rajagobal brought in Mohd Khyril Muhyameen Zambri who proved his worth when he netted the winning goal in the 75th minute.
In the first match, Harimau Malaya lost 0-2 to Qatar in Doha on Feb 6.
Malaysia are scheduled to meet Bahrain next on Oct 15.
Rajagobal heaped praises on his boys for showing tremendous fighting spirit against the Yemeni players.
"They created numerous chances and we could have won by an even bigger margin," he told reporters afterwards.
Yemen coach Tom Saintfiet said he was dissapointed with the defeat although his players created a lot of goal scoring chances.
-- BERNAMA