THE national Under-23 (U-23) squad revived their hopes of advancing in the 2026 U-23 Asian Cup Qualifiers campaign after thrashing Mongolia, 7-0, in a Group F match in Pathum Thani, Thailand, today.
In the match held at Thammasat Stadium, Malaysia wasted no time in opening the scoring through Muhammad Aliff Izwan in the 13th minute before Ahmad Aysar Hadi doubled the lead just two minutes later.
Fergus Tierney then widened the gap with a brilliant hat-trick (36th, 46th and 48th minutes).
Muhammad Aliff added his second goal in the 56th minute, followed by Ziad El Basheer in the 68th, sealing a convincing victory for Harimau Muda.
The win placed Malaysia third in Group F, behind leaders Lebanon and Thailand, although all three teams currently have three points.
The national squad will next focus on their final group match against the War Elephants’ youth team next Tuesday.
Only the 11 group winners and the four best runners-up will qualify for the finals in Saudi Arabia next January. – Bernama