KUALA LUMPUR, 12 Aug – The deadly Coronavirus continues to take its toll on major sporting events in the world as FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) jointly decided that the upcoming qualifying matches for the World Cup Qatar 2022/AFC Asia Cup China 2023 be postponed to next year.
Harimau Malaya head coach, Tan Cheng Hoe has taken the latest developments as a “blessing in disguise” for the team as the M-League is scheduled to resume on Aug 26.
“The league is very tight for the month of September due to lack of time. It can put a strain on the players, especially on the national players. With the postponement, it gives us some ‘breathing space’.
“It means the national team will have more time for preparations. As the coach, I am happy with the latest developments. The players can now concentrate on their game for the respective teams in the league,” said Cheng Hoe when contacted today.
The qualifiers were originally scheduled to take place during the international match windows in October and November this year. The new dates for next year will be announced in due course.
Playing in Group G, Malaysia was scheduled to play the United Arab Emirates away on Oct 8, followed by a home match against Vietnam on Oct 13 and complete their group matches with a match against Thailand in Bangkok on Nov 17.
In a press release by AFC on Wednesday (Aug 12), AFC stated that the matches scheduled to 2021 with the aim of protecting the health and safety of all participants.
“FIFA and the AFC will continue to work together to closely monitor the situation in the region and to identify new dates for the respective matches. The new dates will be announced in due course.”
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