Cheng Hoe justifies decision not to replace under-performing De Paula in UAE loss

KUALA LUMPUR: The Harimau Malaya squad, especially the country's third naturalised player Guilherme de Paula, have come under fire following their 4-0 capitulation to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) early this morning.

The 34-year-old Brazil-born striker seemed lacklustre throughout the 90 minutes and was hardly involved during the Group G second-round 2022 World Cup/2023 Asian Cup qualifying match at the Zabeel Stadium in Dubai.

Social media trolls slammed the player, including some wanting to sell him on the e-commerce portals for as low as 50 sen.

Many Harimau Malaya fans also questioned why De Paula was not substituted while others, who did better, were.

Harimau Malaya head coach Tan Cheng Hoe said it was because the coaching panel believed that the Brazilian was capable of getting an equaliser.

"We had faith because he had the physical size and the finishing. We were thinking positively because we were only down 1-0 then. So, we thought we could get an equaliser through De Paula," he said in a virtual media conference from Dubai today.

Asked if De Paula would continue to be in the starting 11 in the two remaining matches against Vietnam (June 11) and Thailand (June 15), Cheng Hoe said they would discuss and find the best combination.

"I feel that we can't just blame one or two players for our loss to the UAE. Every player did not play to their best ability," he said, adding that the UAE were far better prepared compared to the national team, who only had two weeks to train.

The challenge for Cheng Hoe now is to boost the players' motivation and determination for the two remaining must-win matches.

Meanwhile, Cheng Hoe praised the backline, especially Dion Cools (of Belgian-Malaysian parentage), who was quick to blend in despite it being his debut with the Harimau Malaya.

"With his experience, having played at the highest level in Europe, he was calm and he was also tactically and technically spot-on. His reading of the game was also good. We hope he will be able to help raise the team's standard and guide the younger players so that the country's football future will be brighter," the coach said.

-- BERNAMA