KUALA LUMPUR: Akhyar Rashid is showing flashes of the dazzling form that he once displayed in the M-League.
The 23-year-old, whose skill earned him a move from Kedah to Johor Darul Ta'zim in 2019, scored the winner in Malaysia's 1-0 win against Turkmenistan in a friendly on Thursday at Sultan Ibrahim Stadium.
Former national coach B. Satiananthan sees Akhyar as among the three game changers in the national team -- the other two being Faisal Halim and Darren Lok.
"I'm not surprised by Akhyar's performance. He is in a team that adopts high intensity training and when you train with good players around you, you are always in your element," said Satiananthan.
"I rate him very highly because he's a confident boy. Both he and Faisal give their team speed and skill. It isn't easy to dribble and take on big defenders such as the ones Turkmenistan have. But they are daring enough.
"This is something the team didn't have for the past couple of years. With sheer speed, they can beat most of the big defenders as they are quick in the first two-three minutes."
In 32 appearances for the national team, Akhyar scored seven goals and made nine assists.
Football pundit Datuk Richard Scully believes Akhyar is finally playing for himself.
"He must have done some self-reflection. He knows he has got to do something to keep his identity. I think he has proven to the critics that he's not what they've been saying he is."