Joseph Fighting To Be Fit For World Cup Qualifier Agianst Palestine

14 Jun, 2015



PETALING JAYA: Joseph Kalang Tie is racing against time to be fit for the World Cup qualifier against Palestine on Tuesday.

National coach Dollah Salleh’s influential midfielder has yet to recover from an ankle injury he picked up in the 1-1 draw against Timor Leste in their 2018 World Cup qualifier Asian Zone second round Group A match at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil last Thursday.

Dollah is keeping his fingers crossed as he wants all his best men for the next match against Palestine at the National Stadium.

“Joseph is making progress, but he is not fully fit yet,” said a concerned Dollah.

Joseph was undoubtedly Malaysia’s best player against Timor Leste. He also created the opportunity for Safee Sali to score Malaysia’s goal in the 33rd minute before Timor Leste fought back with an equaliser in stoppage time through Ramon Saro.

Besides Joseph, the other player on the crock list is midfielder Junior Eldstal.

Dollah knows Malaysia have to double their efforts if they aim to get a favourable result against Palestine, who went down 3-2 to Asian giants Saudi Arabia in an away match at the Prince Mohamed Fahd Stadium in Dammam last week.

“Palestine lost to Saudi Arabia by a stoppage-time goal. We will not have it easy despite playing at home,” said Dollah, who has yet to get over the disappointment of Malaysia conceding a stoppage-time goal to Timor Leste.

“We should have collected all three points against Timor Leste,” lamented Dollah.

The other team in Group A are the United Arab Emirates.

The eight group winners and the four best group runners-up will advance to the next round.

The pre-World Cup also serves as a qualifier for the 2019 AFC Asian Cup, which will be held in the United Arab Emirates.

Sumber - Eric Samuel, Star Online www.thestar.com.my