KUALA LUMPUR: National Under-23 (U-23) coach, Ong Kim Swee has sent out a clear warning that he will hesitate to drop just about any player who is not at the best level of fitness when the squad reports for centralised training this November 29 (Thursday).
About 30 players below the age of 21 have been listed this time round as preparations are about to get underway with Kim Swee preparing his squad to face the 2018 Newspaper Cup tournament which takes place from December 10-19 in Nah Trang City, Vietnam.
Only Under-21 players have been called up because they will make up the bulk of the squad for the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Under-23 qualifying rounds in March next year that will take place in Kuala Lumpur.
According to Kim Swee, the first centralised training camp will be very important before the team depart for Vietnam and with very little time to prepare, he does not want to waste too much time working on the players’ fitness.
"I know that at present the Malaysia League (M-League) is on a break before the new season begins next year and many of the players are away on holiday but it is very important for me that they make the effort and take the initiative to keep their fitness level up.
"I have announced and released the list of players three weeks earlier than expected, so I want all the players to be ready, and I hope that they have taken their own initiative to ensure that they are really fit and in the best possible physical condition. If there are players who are lacking in fitness, then I will not hesitate to drop them.
"I will only have about ten days to prepare the squad and I only want to bring the best twenty players over there for the tournament,” said Kim Swee.
The last time Malaysia took part in the Newspaper Cup was four years ago back in 2014.
Malaysia have won the tournament before six years ago in 2012, and coincidentally Kim Swee was in charge of the victorious Malaysian side.
The Newspaper Cup is part of the young national side’s preparations for the qualifying rounds of the AFC U-23 championship where Malaysia have been drawn together with China, Laos, and the Philippines in the chase for a slot to be among the 16 best teams that will advance to the final round in Bangkok in January 2020.