Despite the defeat, head coach Peter Cklamovski stood firmly behind his players, praising their resilience during a challenging qualifying period that saw the team penalised with points deduction for fielding ineligible players. "I’m super proud of the players because the situation we had faced over the past six months or longer was unheard of in football," said Cklamovski. "To come here and play the way we did in a tough match - credit to Vietnam, they are a very good team. I cannot express how proud I am of the national team players." With the defeat, Harimau Malaya ended the campaign with nine points from six matches.

Source: The Star April 01, 2026 12:25 UTC