Malaysia coach K. Rajagobal has urged critics to give his team time to mature as Thursday's exit from the Asian Zone World Cup qualifiers begins to sink in.
Malaysia failed to progress to the third round of qualifying for the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil following a 1-1 draw with Singapore at the Bukit Jalil Stadium in Kuala Lumpur.
The draw sent the Singaporeans through instead of the Malaysian courtesy of a 6-4 aggregate score they built with an impressive 5-3 win from the first leg
Putting the disappointment of being eliminated from the qualifiers at the hands of their fiercest rivals Singapore behind him, Rajagobal reminded the media that his side was being groomed for the 2015 AFC Asian Cup in Australia.
"We have to remember that the team is being prepared for the 2015 Asian Cup. These players will mature in four years' time and they can only get better," Rajagobal was quoted in The Star as saying.
"We didn't qualify for the next round ... but we also didn't lose in front of our own crowd. I believe we have given our supporters a good game.
"Injuries and delaying tactics broke our attacking rhythm and momentum. A lapse in concentration in defence caused us to concede the equaliser."
He added: "We should have won the match ... but as a coach I'm happy with my players' performance.
"It's not fair to blame any player. It's a team game and we all have to share the blame."
The future of the Malaysian national team will invariably come under the microscope once again over the next few days, but after some thought it may not seem so bleak if Rajagobal's boys can learn from their mistakes.
Six of the players who featured for Malaysia on Thursday against Singapore are still eligble for this year's SEA Games in Indonesia and next year's London Olympics.
Malaysia Player Rantings
Malaysia
Khairul Fahmi Che Mat - 9
An outstanding game by the Kelantan custodian who replaced Sharbinee Allawee from the first-leg defeat. Khairul Fahmi made two good saves from Qiu Li in the opening fifteen minutes, and kept Malaysia in the tie with a stunning save from a Shaiful Esah free-kick in the 39th minute.
Had clean hands when handling high balls, and was quick to rush off his line to deny Qiu Li in the 90th minute. One of the best goalkeepers in the region at present.
Mahali Jasuli - 7
The right-back toiled manfully all night long and was not afraid to put in a hard challenge. Was also ever-ready to help out in attack.
Fadhli bin Mohd Shas - 7
Excellent - and painful - block to deny Aleksandar Duric in the first half. Fadhli was undersized against his veteran opponent but stuck to his task all night long.
Mohd Aidil Zafuan (off 22') - N/A
K. Rajagopal took a huge gamble on playing the half-fit Aidil and it backfired on him when the 23-year-old Negeri Sembilan defender limped off midway through the first half.
Asraruddin Putra Omar - 7
Both Malaysian full-backs should be proud of the performances they put in. Asraruddin kept a tight leash on Shi Jiayi all night long, but was also keen on venturing forward to support his left-winger S. Kunalan.
Amirul Hadi Zainal - 6.5
Credit has to be given to Amirul Hadi who never stopped trying to get the better of Lions left-back Shaiful Esah. Pacy and armed with a bag of tricks, perhaps the only criticism of the Selangor winger was the lack of quality crosses down the right.
Ismail Faruqi Asha'ri (off 63') - 5
Ismail Faruqi was always going to have a tough time trying to fill the big boots of suspended captain Safiq Rahim. He showed a couple of nice touches early on, but tried too hard to create something out of nothing and was kept quiet by the defensive-minded duo of Hariss Harun and Mustafic Fahrudin.
Amar Rohidan - 7
An impressive peformance by the Kedah man, who played his role as holding midfielder to perfection. He showed good awareness to mop up messes in front of the Malaysian back four, and his distribution was neat throughout the match.
Influence declined in the second half though, probably due to fatigue at having to provide a shield for his defence.
Kunalan Subramaniam - 8
Singapore were already aware of the danger this man posed, after he caused Ismail Yunos to be sent off in the first-leg with his sheer pace and trickery.
Would be disappointed with his shot straight at the Singaporean keeper in the fifth minute, but deserves credit for playing to the whistle in the build-up to Malaysia's goal. While the Lions were all expecting the referee to call for a free-kick after Kunalan was felled outside the box, the Negeri Sembilan man continued on his way, before slipping in a clever pass for Safee Sali to hammer home.
Abdul Hadi Yahya (off 71') - 4
Probably awarded a starting berth by Rajagopal after his goal-scoring heroics at the Jalan Besar Stadium last Saturday. However, Abdul Hadi looked a shadow of the player he was in the first-leg, and was unsurprisingly hauled off just after the 70th-minute mark.
Safee Sali - 7.5
He may have opened the scoring for the Tigers - and what a clinical finish it was - but Safee was largely disappointing after a bright start.
Showed what he was capable off early on when he completely bamboozled Mustafic Fahrudin near the byline, before laying on a neat pass which Kunalan failed to take advantage of. Ultimately, Safee could not find his feet, and failed to muster a effort on goal of note, apart from his expertly-taken goal in the 57th minute.
Subs
Muslim Ahmad (on 22') - 5.5
It's never a good feeling starting on the bench before being brought on early on in the game, knowing you weren't your coach's first-choice selection, and Muslim couldn't quite fill the boots of the injury-hit Aidil Zafuan.
Was good in the air but put in a number of reckless and unnecessary challenges, and was extremely slow to react when the ball hit the deck.
Kandasamy Gurusamy (on 63') - 6
Kandasamy was brought on with slightly less than half an hour to go in hopes he would be able to provide the Tigers with some much-needed drive. Ultimately, his introduction was in vain. While he was tidy in possession, he failed to come up with the killer pass that Safee would have thrived on.
Ahmad Fakri Saarani (on 71') - 5
Looked lively after coming on for the ineffective Abdul Hadi, but as the game edged closer to a Singapore win on aggregate, Fakri let his emotions get the better of him.
First he clattered into Lions custodian Izwan to pick up a yellow, before a late challenge on Juma'at Jantan saw Ahmad Fakri receive his marching orders.
_Copy from espnstar.com_
