Malaysia Lose To Kyrgyz Republic In Friendly

MELAKA (Malaysia), Oct 17 (Bernama) – Malaysia lost 0-1 to the Kyrgyz Republic in an International A class friendly match at the Hang Jebat Stadium, Krubong here Tuesday night. The Harimau Malaya coached by Tan Cheng Hoe fought bravely but could not find a way through the stout Kygyz defence. National striker Norshahrul Idlan Talaha came close in the 29th and 43rd minutes but his shots hit the crossbar. Substitute Sagynbaev Bekzhan turned out to be the hero for the visitors when his piledriver in the 68th minute could not be saved by Malaysian keeper Khairul Fahmi Che Mat. His teammate Iusupov Mustafa was given the marching orders in the 80 th minute for disputing the referee’s decision on not acting on his complaint that Norshahrul Idlan had fouled him. At the post-match press conference, Cheng Hoe said that although they lost, it was a good learning experience for his boys. "Tonight, I could see positive development in the team, they showed better quality of play,” he said. Meanwhile, Kyrgyz Republic head coach Alexander Krestinin said Malaysia had done well to rival 'The White Falcons' and that his team needed to work harder than before to manage the thin win. “As for the red card, we will watch and do an analysis after this match,” he said. -- BERNAMA