Nazri profits from derby pressure, latest news from Singapore football

After having had the honor of coaching the national football team, Nazri Nasir could not have asked for a harder opponent in his debut, which could turn his dream job into a nightmare.

This weekend, the former national captain of Malaysia will face the stress and tension of the match against Malaysia, his rival of Malaysia, at the AirMarine Cup at Bukit Jalil Stadium.

"The pressure is a pleasure," he told The Straits Times in Kuala Lumpur with a cheerful tone.

"I take the game positively, I see it as a challenge and I hope it will clear the players."

On March 7, the Singapore Football Association announced that Nazri would be the acting coach. He will lead the Lions for this week's AirMarine Cup, their first outing since the Asean Football Federation's Suzuki Cup last November.

Singapore will meet Malaysia tonight, while Afghanistan will play Oman in the afternoon. The winners will play the final on Saturday with the losers in the match for third place.

Since then, the 48-year-old coach has managed to coach the team only twice.

The first, a 90-minute session on Monday, focused on small games and finishing. The second, a one-hour session, was held last night and focused on tactics.

Apart from goalkeeper Zaiful Nizam, who is nursing a calf, the rest of the 22-man squad has no problem of injury.

Lions are ranked 165th in the FIFA rankings, while Malaysia is two lower.

However, at the last year's Suzuki Cup, it was the Tigers who reached the final before sinking 3-2 overall against Vietnam as the Lions dropped in the group stage.

The Malaysian coach, Tan Cheng Hoe, told the Malaysian press: "Our mind is high – that 's fine, but I want to make sure that they' re safe. adapt to our way of playing.

"It's different from their clubs, the training sessions were different for them, but they adapted.

"Playing against Singapore will not be easy – I told the boys not to be emotional, but to focus on the game."

Even though Malaysia has the advantage of being at home, Nazri can feel the determination to cross the Lions.

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He said: "Even after a training session, I can see that all players are eager to leave.

"Guys like (Khairul) Amri, (Khairul) Nizam, Yasir (Hanapi), Gabriel (Quak), and Faris (Ramli) all looked very keen, and all players are hungry to be in the first XI.

"We will not wait for Malaysia to attack us, we will be pressing from the start.

"Chances are very rare in international games, but when they do appear, I want players to be focused and take those chances.

"We are not expecting a draw, Malaysia will be a tough opponent, it's a very big rivalry and both sides want to win, but I'm counting on my players to allow them to deliver."