MALAYSIA COACH NAFUZI ZAIN WELCOMES CHALLENGE OF FACING HOSTS INDONESIA AT MANDIRI CUP™ 2025

Singapore, 25 June 2025: Malaysia U-23 head coach Nafuzi Zain believes hosts Indonesia are the firm favourites to win the ASEAN U-23 Mandiri Cup™ 2025, but insists his side can rise to the challenge of taking on Garuda Muda in front of their own fans during the tournament next month.

The long-time rivals have been drawn together in Group A for the tournament, which is a showcase for ASEAN’s rising stars and takes place in Indonesia from 15 to 29 July.

They meet in a much-anticipated clash at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium on 19 July, and while Malaysia have not been beaten in their previous two meetings with Indonesia in the U-23 tournament, Nafuzi knows that it will be a tough task for his side to maintain that record in this year’s competition.

“The advantage in this tournament lies naturally with the host nation, especially with the strong home support that they enjoy at the Gelora Bung Karno Stadium,” said the 46-year-old Harimau Muda boss.

“In my view, Indonesia are the favourites to win the Mandiri Cup™ 2025 as they will be playing on their home ground. Nevertheless, we are prepared to face any challenge that comes our way during the tournament.

“Our ultimate target is to reach the final, but personally, I prefer to take it one game at a time. From there, our initial goal is to reach the semi-finals, and then the final.”

A former Malaysia Super League midfielder with Terengganu, Kedah and his native Kelantan, Nafuzi moved into coaching after hanging up his boots in 2010. He enjoyed a successful spell at Terengganu FC, where he was named Best Coach at the Football Association of Malaysia awards in 2022 after leading the east coast club to runner-up finishes in the Malaysia Super League and FA Cup.

Nafuzi was put in charge of the national U-23 team in January and, while the Mandiri Cup™ 2025 is his first competitive tournament with his new charges, he has been able to evaluate the talent at his disposal over the past six months.

“We have not had the opportunity to gather or conduct a centralised training camp with the U-23 national squad since I took over the team, so this is our first time assembling and getting to know the players more closely,” he said.

“However, on a personal level, I have already observed the capabilities of the players through scouting, having attended several matches in the Super League, MFL Cup, and President’s Cup over the past season.

“In the squad, we have a few players in the Super League – Malaysia’s top division – such as Haqimi Azim of Kuala Lumpur City FC, Ubaidullah Shamsul of Terengganu FC, and Alif Izwan of Selangor FC.

“While the rest are playing in the second-tier leagues like the MFL Cup and President’s Cup, we do not place the burden solely on our Super League players. Instead, our approach is to play as a team.”

Malaysia will be holding a training camp in Kuala Lumpur which begins on 1 July and includes warm-up games against league sides Melaka FC, Negeri Sembilan FC and PDRM FC. They will travel to Jakarta on 13 July and meet the Philippines in their opening game on 15 July before matches against Brunei on 18 July and Indonesia on 21 July. All of their Group A games will be played at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium.

The first-placed team in each group and the second-placed team with the best record at the end of the group stage will progress to the semi-finals, which will be played on 25 July. The winners of the semi-finals will meet in the final at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium on 29 July.

For more information about the ASEAN U-23 Mandiri Cup™ and other ASEAN United FC events, please visit https://aseanutdfc.com/ and @aseanutdfc on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, YouTube, X and LinkedIn.

Photo Credit: Malaysia NT

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