Malaysians must support Harimau Malaya to beat Thailand - Khairy

Malaysia will need the support of all Malaysians to overcome a mammoth task of beating Thailand in the second leg of the AFF Suzuki Cup final on Saturday said Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin.

Khairy said after losing the first leg 0-2 at the Rajamangala National Stadium in Thailand last night, Malaysia has no choice but to win the second leg at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil.

He said even if they are not at the stadium physically, they can become the '12th player' by providing all the support to boost the confidence of the players.

"I still believe in the determination and spirit of the players. We managed to do the 'impossible' when we were trailing Vietnam 1-2 after the first leg semifinal at home. But we managed to beat them 4-2 at their own backyard and qualify for the final.

"Of course 0-2 will be more difficult than 1-2 but we cannot give up on Dollah Salleh's boys," he said after chairing the National Sports Council board meeting, Thursday.

Meanwhile, Malaysian defender Mohamad Fadhli Mohd Shas who gave away the penalty from which Thailand took the lead last night, apologized to all Malaysians for his mistake.

"I want to apologise to the people of Malaysia because the 0-2 loss was partly due to my mistake," he said upon arrival at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Sepang, Thursday.