Football

Ribera confident as Malaysia chase Under-17 Asian Cup qualification

KUALA LUMPUR: National youth coach Javier Jorda Ribera believes his squad is well-prepared for their mission to qualify for the Under-17 Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia next year.

The Young Tigers will kick off their Group H qualifying campaign against the United Arab Emirates at the New Laos National Stadium in Vientiane tomorrow.

They will conclude their group stage matches against hosts Laos at the same venue on Sunday.

With only three teams in the group following Lebanon's withdrawal, Malaysia have a strong chance of qualifying for the tournament proper for the seventh time.

In the build-up to the qualifiers, the team played several friendlies before heading to Laos, including two matches against Central Asian side Tajikistan.

"Our objective here is to qualify for next year's Under-17 Asian Cup," said Ribera at the pre-match press conference in Vientiane today.

"We have been building this team for the past five months, starting from the 2024 AFF Under-16 Championship.

"We also played several closed-door matches over the past three weeks. I believe we are ready for the challenges ahead."

The competition format will see the 10 group winners and the five best runners-up join hosts Saudi Arabia in the Under-17 Asian Cup.

Malaysia previously qualified for the tournament in 2004, 2008, 2014, 2016, 2018, and 2023.

Their best result came in 2014, when they reached the quarter-finals under coach S. Balachandran.

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