Attacking midfielder Mohd. Amri Yahyah says he is unfazed by the enormity of the challenge before Malaysia in Saturday's second leg of the AFF Suzuki Cup final against Thailand at the National Stadium in Kuala Lumpur.
The 2010 champions are seeking to overturn a 2-0 deficit from Wednesday's first leg in Bangkok. They are also looking to end a 10-year winless run in the competition against three-time winners Thailand.
"With hard work, I am sure we can get the minimum two goals that we need," Amri told New Straits Times. "We have to forget what happened in the first leg and focus entirely on Saturday's game."
No finalists have won the elite ASEAN competition after losing the first leg since the home-and-away format was introduced in 2004. But the 33-year-old Johor Darul Takzim (JDT) playmaker is confident that Harimau Malaya can pull off a miraculous win along the lines of their 4-2 semifinal second leg triumph in Vietnam after trailing 2-1 in the first leg at home.
"I think we were too eager to win in the first leg of the final unlike in the semifinal in Hanoi. That led to poor finishing. We need to improve on this. I'm not happy with my own performance. We'll have to go all out and attack in the second leg. We shouldn't be afraid of conceding goals because we can't afford to sit back."
"I think we were too eager to win in the first leg of the final unlike in the semifinal in Hanoi," added Amri. "That led to poor finishing. We need to improve on this. I'm not happy with my own performance. We'll have to go all out and attack in the second leg. We shouldn't be afraid of conceding goals because we can't afford to sit back."
Amri's captain, defensive midfielder Mohd. Shukor Adan is also in no mood to give up on Malaysia's title aspirations. "Overturning a 2-0 deficit in the second leg of the final might sound like a big hurdle to be overcome, but we are not going to throw in the towel," Shukor told The Star. "We still have another 90 minutes to play. We'll see what happens in Kuala Lumpur," said the 35-year-old Felda United midfielder.
Left-back Zubir Azmi, one of Malaysia's most consistent performers in the tournament, also agreed with his teammates that their hopes had not evaporated with the defeat in Bangkok. "With the backing of the capacity crowd at the National Stadium, it's not impossible for us to overturn the deficit," the 23-year-old Terengganu defender told New Straits Times. "The players are highly motivated and we are not about to give up when we're so close to the trophy."
Malaysia won their only AFF title under K. Rajagobal four years ago. Thailand last won the Southeast Asian tournament in 2002 despite appearing in three of the past four finals.