JOHOR BARU: National head coach Kim Pan Gon has reminded all 27 players called up to centralised training camp to be willing to fight for their place in the starting line-up for their upcoming friendly matches against Turkmenistan (Thursday) and Hong Kong (March 28).
Pan Gon wants his charges to show determination and be flexible when it comes to the positions they played in during training.
The two games will be played at the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium, Iskandar Puteri. The squad is currently training at the Johor Darul Ta'zim (JDT) Training Centre at Padang Seri Gelam.
"This is their chance to show their true potential and what they are capable of," said Pan Gon, when met during training today.
"The eight new players who have been called up must raise their game to a higher level. I hope they can adapt quickly so I can evaluate their true abilities."
Pan Gon, when asked, defended his decision to call up a number of players who have lacked playing time this season.
He is aware that a number of fans have questioned his selection of players.
"The fans may not be very happy with my actions but I have my own reasons. We have been evaluating these players (before deciding to call them up) and know their current level of ability, in fact they have already proven themselves in training here," said Pan Gon.
"The fans have to understand that we do not have a huge selection of players to choose from, our priority is quality. I apologise to the fans but I believe they (players selected) deserve to be in this team."
Pan Gon appeared to be in high spirits ahead of the two matches. He has been waiting for the chance to play at Sultan Ismail Stadium, which uses zeon zoysia grass, since he began coaching Harimau Malaya.
"We have always played a fast and dynamic game, even when we played on cow grass. The pitch at Sultan Ismail Stadium could help (our game)," added Pan Gon.
"I want to present a fast and technical game to the fans. We are expecting both matches to be played at high intensity.
"To be honest, this is good preparation for us ahead of the Asian Cup (Jan 12-Feb 24) because we will be playing in good stadiums with good grass in Qatar.
"We all know that the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium is one of the best in Asia."
KW: Football, Harimau Malaya, Kim Pan Gon.