KUALA LUMPUR, April 9 — The national Under-23 (U-23) squad still intends to make it to the men’s football finals at the 2023 Cambodia South East Asian (SEA) Games despite being drawn in Group B, along with defending champions Vietnam and favourites Thailand.

Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) president Datuk Hamidin Mohd Amin was optimistic about the draw, stating that it was the best for the squad, coached by E. Elavarasan, as Malaysia had won the gold medal in 2011 in Jakarta, Indonesia when they faced a similar situation.

"I have reminded the players and Elavarasan that we will play against Thailand and Vietnam early in the group so it’s easy to plan the tactics. This happened when I was the manager and Datuk Ong Kim Swee was the coach (2011), where at that time Malaysia was also in the group of death along with Thailand and Indonesia.

"I think this time it may favour us because we are up against a strong team early on and will meet seemingly lesser teams from then on. Focus, avoiding injuries and the commitment of players is crucial, our target is still to enter the finals,” he told Bernama recently.

The 2011 gold medal was the last gold Malaysia won in SEA Games football. They lost in the 2017 final against Thailand in Kuala Lumpur.

Malaysia has been drawn into Group B, with Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore and Laos, while Indonesia, Myanmar, Cambodia, the Philippines and Timor Leste are in Group A.

The football event will run from April 29 to May 16. — Bernama