KUALA LUMPUR: National Under-22 (U-22) squad striker N Thanabalan attributes his deadly instinct for the two goals he scored to give Malaysia a 3-1 victory against Myanmar at Shah Alam Stadium on Monday.
The 22-year-old player said it is the task of strikers to always take their positions when the team on the attack so as to receive passes from their teammates.
Its my instinct and timing. It is a striker’s duty to be at their opponents’ penalty box in an attack and to read the game for a chance to score,” he told reporters after the match on Monday.
The win against Myanmar also confirmed Malaysia’s berth in the semi-finals of the 2017 Kuala Lumpur SEA Games football competition and put Malaysia in a good position to be group A champions with only a draw in the last group match against Laos on Wednesday.
Despite netting three goals in the last three matches, the Felcra FC player from Seremban, Negeri Sembilan is still not satisfied with his goal collection.
“I will continue to do my best to maintain the momentum until the final and will try to score when there is an opportunity,” he added.
In this regard, team captain Muhammad Adib Zainudin commended the performance of his teammate even though he was disappointed at the lapse to let Myanmar score towards the end of game.
“We played very well and all went according to plan but it could have been better if we keep a clean sheet.
“Personally, I was disappointed but sometimes mistakes are inevitable, so we have to keep our focus and work harder after this,” he said.
If Malaysia emerge as group champions, the host team is scheduled to meet the runners-up of group B in the semi-finals on Saturday in which Vietnam, Indonesia and Thailand are vying for the top two slots. — Bernama