KUALA LUMPUR: The FA of Malaysia (FAM) remains optimistic that its national team will reach the Asean Cup final despite the difficult situations.
So far, things have been far from encouraging for Harimau Malaya.
The national team failed to impress against lowly ranked sides, drawing 2-2 against Cambodia and struggling to edge Timor Leste 3-2 in their first two Asean Cup matches this month.
National coach Pau Marti Vicente has been unable to get together Malaysia's best players for the regional tournament as it clashes with the M-League calendar.
Clubs are reluctant to release their stars as the Asean Cup is held outside the Fifa window.
The Malaysia squad for the upcoming Asean Cup match in Bangkok against Thailand will be missing four Sabah players. Dominic Tan, Daniel Ting, Stuart Wilkin, and Darren Lok have been recalled for the Malaysia Cup quarter-final against Kuching City.
This has left Vicente with a narrow pool of players to select from. And the consequences can be seen in Malaysia's matches against Cambodia and Timor Leste.
Questions have now arisen over Harimau Malaya's consistency and readiness.
But FAM secretary general Datuk Noor Azman Rahman believes that Vicente has the expertise to guide Malaysia through these tough situations.
"We have set a target to reach the final, but we are also taking it one step at a time.
"We believe Vicente can guide the team to success. We understand the clubs' needs, and they have been supportive," said Azman.