03/04/2026

SPORTS FRIDAY | APR 3, 2026

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Sabah target Penang upset

SHORTS

Harimau Malaya drop 17 places in Fifa rankings THE national football team, Harimau Malaya, has dropped from 121st to 138th place in the latest world rank ings released by the Fifa. Based on Wednesday’s update, Harimau Malaya, who have accumu lated a total of 1,086.22 points, slipped 17 places following a 1-3 defeat to Vietnam in their final Group F match of the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers on Tuesday. The drop in ranking was also influ enced by a decision by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) not to count two of Harimau Malaya’s previ ous qualifying matches against Nepal and Vietnam. Based on the original results of the two matches, Malaysia defeated Nepal 2-0 at the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium on March 25 last year and thrashed Vietnam 4-0 at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil on June 10 last year. However, on March 17, the AFC Disciplinary and Ethics Committee made a decision to declare Malaysia to lose both matches by 0-3 scorelines after Harimau Malaya were found to have fielded ineligible players. The decision was made following a document falsification issue involving seven Harimau Malaya players, namely Gabriel Palmero, Facundo Garces, Rodrigo Holgado, Imanol Machuca, Joao Figueiredo, Jon Irazabal and Hector Hevel. Slot confirms Isak’s return LIVERPOOL STRIKER Alexander Isak is poised to rejoin training with the team this week after a prolonged absence due to a broken leg, manager Arne Slot confirmed, with his return also a major boost for Sweden in the run-up to the World Cup. The 26-year-old required surgery after breaking his leg in December while scoring Liverpool’s opening goal in a 2-1 win over Tottenham Hotspur. With Sweden sealing their spot at the World Cup with a playoff win over Poland on Tuesday, Slot said things were looking up for Isak. “I think Alex is in a really good place because Sweden qualified for the World Cup yesterday evening and apart from that he’s going to train with the group again for the first time tomorrow,” Slot told club media yes terday. “Of course it’s only his first session, after three or four months (out), with the team but it’s good to have him back because we all know who we signed and we’ve signed an incredible striker. “So to have him again in a team that’s usually generating quite a lot chances – and maybe not immedi ately from the first moment that he can start – but to have him back for the last two months is, I think, very helpful for us.”

SABAH FC aim to get a positive result when they take on Penang FC away in the first leg of the MFL Challenge Cup final at the City Stadium in George Town on Saturday (April 4). Sabah FC head coach Juan Torrest Garrido believes his men are in prime physical condition, having undergone intensive training ahead

their team at the City Stadium. He said their presence would be crucial to boosting the morale of the players who will be fielded in the first-leg clash. He added that their target was to return home with a comfortable advantage, ahead of the return leg at the Likas Stadium on April 19. – Bernama ENGLAND midfielder John Stones is not expected to be offered a new deal by Man City, with the 31-year-old’s former club Everton among those monitoring his situa tion. SANDRO TONALI’S representatives have made contact with Real Madrid as part of a widening search for the 25 year-old’s next club, while Man City are also interested in signing the Newcastle and Italy midfielder. BARCELONA are leading the race to sign 31 year-old Manchester City and Portugal mid fielder Bernardo Silva on a free transfer this summer. ARSENAL are monitoring 19-year-old Bayer Leverkusen and Cameroon for ward Christian Kofane, with the German club wanting up to £60m for a summer transfer. BARCELONA’S £26m option to buy on-loan England forward Marcus Rashford, 28, expired in March, mean ing the Spanish club must now nego tiate a transfer fee with Man United. MAN CITY , Liverpool and Chelsea are keeping tabs on 27-year-old Barcelona and France defender Jules Kounde. INTER MILAN and Netherlands right back Denzel Dumfries, 29, has been offered to Premier League clubs including Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Chelsea, Tottenham and Newcastle United. MAN UNITED are interested in 23-year old Benfica and Sweden defender Samuel Dahl, and have sent scouts to watch him more than 10 times this sea son. CELTA VIGO want 21-year-old Spanish midfielder Fer Lopez to remain at the club after his loan from Wolves expires at the end of the season. ROBERTO DE ZERBI wants to sign Juventus and Italy midfielder Manuel Locatelli, 28, for Tottenham in the sum mer. MAN UNITED and Liverpool are pur suing a move for 19-year-old Ivory Coast and RB Leipzig winger Yan Diomande. TOUCHLINES

it’s just the first leg,”he said in a state ment yesterday. Commenting on Penang FC, he expects them to be highly moti vated, seeing that the first-leg tie will be played on their home ground. Meanwhile, Sabah FC manager Mohd Arziz Afizy Rumsani hopes that Sabahans living in the Peninsula will turn up in droves to support

of the crucial tie. He added that their training focused on the technical and tactical aspects of our game to make sure we are well prepared to face Penang FC. “We expect to have better con trol of the game (despite it being an away fixture). Whatever the result is in Penang, it won’t matter because

Malaysian footbal legend Zainal Abidin (top right) . – AFF

Malaysian legend reflects on glory days at Asean Hyundai Cup M ALAYSIA’S football legend Datuk Zainal Abidin Hassan holds some of his fondest memories from the inaugural Asean Championship in 1996, even though the campaign ended with a narrow defeat to archrivals Thailand in the final. earned 1-1 draws with hosts Singapore and Thailand, in which Zainal scored a second half equaliser with an exquisite freekick. Zainal then marshalled the team’s defence with authority to lead Malaysia to a convincing 3-1 semifi nals win over Indonesia before losing to Thailand in the final through a solitary strike by Kiatisuk Senamuang, who scored early in the match. Zainal’s MVP legacy

In the twilight of his playing career, Zainal was so commanding and inspirational at the heart of the Malaysian defence, he won the Most Valuable Player (MVP) award at the tournament, now named the Asean Hyundai Cup. He is the lone Malaysian to date to earn the individual accolade in 15 editions. The recognition marked the pinnacle of an illus trious playing career which began as an 18-year-old and subsequently yielded multiple honours for club and country where he racked up over 100 interna tional caps and 50 goals for Malaysia. His fledgling career started as an enterprising rightback before switching to a striker role at the sug gestion of Pahang head coach at the time, Frank Lord. It was in the attacking position that Zainal blos somed into a feared forward in domestic and regional competitions, thanks largely to his predatory instincts, before his illustrious career made a full cir cle with a final switch in positions. “I was getting close to the end of my playing career and because my speed was slowing down, I switched from striker to centreback to ensure that I could keep playing,” says Zainal. “I initially did not want to play (in the 1996 Asean Championship) but our national coach Wan Jamak Wan Hassan and his assistant, Irfan Bakti requested I come back to guide the squad as team captain. “As I respected both coaches and team manager Datuk Dell Akbar Khan, I decided to play in Singapore. Due to my experience as a striker and defender, I was able to guide our team, and without wanting to boast about it now, I think I played really well throughout the tournament.” In the group stage, Malaysia defeated the Philippines and Brunei 7-0 and 6-0 respectively and the time for us to identify players with real poten tial. We select only the best, without favouritism or cronyism,” she said after the NSL launch at Astro Studio Bukit Jalil on Wednesday. Alwiyah said among the key tournaments serv ing as benchmarks in the search for players for the 2027 SEA Games are the National Youth Championship, the Malaysia Games (Sukma) and the NSL itself, which she described as a continuous pathway to build a long list of players before final ising the squad. “We already have a long list of players and the

“Before that tournament, I was already thinking of transitioning my career into coaching,” says Zainal, who is currently the technical director of Malaysian club Immigration FC II. Looking back now, I was proud of how we played against the best teams in the region and winning the MVP, it was thanks largely to the whole team who had trust in me. “In the final against Thailand, we controlled most of the match and we had great support from our fans who came across the Causeway from Johor, Malacca, Negri Sembilan and the Klang Valley. Since transitioning into coaching, Zainal has lifted the Malaysia Cup and Malaysia FA Cup with Pahang and enjoyed stints with other Malaysian teams, including Selangor FC. He has no intention of step ping away from the game just yet as he is now in his early 60s. The Asean Hyundai Cup 2026, the jewel in the crown of Asean football, will celebrate its 30th anni versary when this year’s competition is played from July 24 to Aug 26. Malaysia have been placed in Group B alongside seven-time champions Thailand, Philippines, Myanmar and Laos, while defending champions Vietnam are in Group A with Singapore, Indonesia, Cambodia and the winners of the qualifying round play-off between Brunei Darussalam and Timor Leste.

Visit ASEANUtdFC.com and @aseanutdfc , the official digital channels for the Hyundai Cup and other Asean United FC events for the full match schedule and access to news, information and exclu sive content. – AFF/SPORTFIVE NSL sparks selection battle for SEA Games: PBJM

£1 = RM5.33

THE National Netball Super League (NSL) contin ues to serve as a key platform for Malaysian Netball Association (PBJM) to identify and assess the country’s top talents in forming the national squad ahead of the 2027 SEA Games on home soil. PBJM president Alwiyah Talib said player selec tion does not rely solely on coaches’ views but also involves an evaluation panel tasked with monitor ing players’ performances across various tourna ments throughout the year. “When there are competitions such as the NSL and other tournaments organised by PBJM, this is

instead of the usual one. “This innovation has been widely used in over seas leagues such as in Australia. It not only adds excitement to the game but also gives trailing teams a chance to close the gap in the closing stages,” she said. In addition, this season’s NSL will also introduce pre-season matches as well as the organisation of the Original Cup, which will take place a few days after the league concludes, as part of efforts to expand exposure and playing time for local players. – Bernama

search will continue until we find the best combi nation. In the end, we will select around 12 players only to represent Malaysia,” she said. Meanwhile, Alwiyah said the fifth edition of the NSL, scheduled from April 10 to May 17, will feature several enhancements aimed at improving the quality of play and adding tactical elements, including the introduction of the “super shot” rule for the first time in the domestic league. She said under the rule, goals scored from a des ignated zone outside a specific line during the final five minutes of play will be awarded two points