PETALING JAYA: Perak defender Azlan Ahmad has been called up to replace the injured Nasriq Baharom for the friendly match against the Chinese Olympic team in Yanbian on July 13.
National coach B. Sathianathan said that Selangor coach Dollah Salleh informed him that Nasriq had picked up a hamstring injury in the Malaysia Cup match against Kelantan in Kota Baru last week.
“The hectic schedule in domestic competition restricts us to only three days of preparation before we leave for China. I cannot have any passenger in the team,” he said.
“I have informed all coaches to let me know about their players’ condition before they send them for national call-ups or trials. This saves me time and I can consider other options.”
Nasriq was a regular feature for the national Under-23 squad in the Inter-Continental Cup in May.
Sathianathan added that France-based Titus James had indicated that he would attend trials next week.
Meanwhile, the senior team are down to play against India in Hyderabad on July 22 and Sathianathan said that the friendly matches would serve as good preparation for the players ahead of the Merdeka Tournament in October and the Asean Football Federation (AFF) championships in December.
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