Rizal Ghazali – Malaysia’s best defender?
Tan Cheng Hoe was visibly excited to see his men clinch the Malaysia Cup title last night, so you can’t entirely blame him for going gung ho in heaping praises on his troops, including Rizal Ghazali, who was arguably the best player on the pitch. In fact, the Kedah boss claims Rizal is the best defender in Malaysia, as of now. We may not entirely buy it, but Rizal has been up there with the best this year – that’s absolutely indubitable. He’s defensively decent, but offers a lot more for Kedah in attacking positions. He’s got pace, he’s got that weird sense of determination to win every ball, but most importantly, he’s got composure. His goal might have been a deflected attempt, but it did prove Rizal has the guts to try his luck from distance. On the other hand, his spot-kick winner depicted so much of composure. He needed to score, with 80,000 people watching him inside the Shah Alam Stadium. And the 24 year-old didn’t allow pressure to get to his head.
Hazwan Bakri remains Malaysia’s best bet
We can spend weeks arguing about the inclusion of Safee Sali or even Darren Lok, in Datuk Ong Kim Swee’s Malaysian squad for the AFF Suzuki Cup. But fact is, none of them should or must get a spot ahead of Hazwan Bakri. Last year, the ex-Harimau Muda man banged in two goals to inspire Selangor to their 33rd Malaysia Cup title. Last night, just as Selangor went 0-1 down and were desperately looking for a breath of fresh air, Hazwan Bakri showed tremendous predatory instincts to power past Azmeer Yusof, before slotting home coolly to make it 1-1 on the night. The goal was a combination of different attributes like speed, awareness and ball control. And that’s what you get with Hazwan. His speed allows him to play on the flank and still influence play. But at the same time, his awareness and ball control allows him to be effectively deployed as a center-forward as well. At this rate, he remains Malaysia’s best bet for goals at the AFF Suzuki Cup.
Azmi Muslim is not good enough for Selangor
People have different opinions about Azmi Muslim because of the background he came from, before becoming a professional football through the MyTeam TV program. He was a forklift driver at one point, so his story is undoubtedly inspiring and deserves every ounce of admiration it receives. But from a footballing perspective, Azmi is just simply not good enough to feature in Selangor’s starting XI. For a team that wants to be chasing honours consistently, Azmi lacks qualities that are predominant in most modern fullbacks – attacking precision combined with defensive stability. Last night, he was constantly troubled by Kedah’s attackers, and never looked comfortable in dealing with them. There was a barrage of horrendous tackles, barely anything going forward and plenty of nerves when he stepped up to convert the spot-kick. Even the greatest of players can miss spot-kicks under pressure, but Azmi’s below-par performance meant that his missed spot-kick was the final straw for Selangor fans.
Tan Cheng Hoe fully deserves this triumph
Malaysian football fans can be absurd. Just a few months ago, people were calling for Cheng Hoe to be sacked, as soon as Kedah found themselves in a bad patch. And I remember ex-Kedah coach Azraai Khor publicly defending Cheng Hoe on Facebook, claiming he’s probably the best coach Kedah has had in years. Today, few would disagree with Azraai. Cheng Hoe hasn’t only inspired them to two cup triumphs in the last two years, he’s also got them playing an entertaining style of football – precisely why neutrals were rooting for them last night. You can be a fan of any team in Malaysia, but Kedah’s style of football will undoubtedly catch your attention. And Cheng Hoe accomplished all of this, without hitting back at the barrage of criticism he’s been subjected to. Class act.
Baddrol Bakthiar is ready for the Suzuki Cup
Last night was meant to be a minor baptism of fire for Baddrol Bakthiar, ahead of what could be a career-defining month. The Suzuki Cup kicks off in mid-November and Baddrol is expected to replace Safiq Rahim, at the heart of Malaysia’s midfield. That’s a HUGE ask, considering how influential Safiq has been for the national team. However, Baddrol proved his mettle yet again last night with an assured display in midfield. He drove the team forward and was at the heart of most of their offensive efforts. And as soon as the match was over, he publicly revealed his desire to the win the Suzuki Cup. Replacing Safiq is never an easy thing to do, but in Baddrol Bakthiar, Ong has a candidate who is not only good, but also determined to step things up and do well for the Malaysian Tigers.
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