Malaysia national team striker Amri Yahyah is confident that the team can do well despite a string of bad results in recent weeks and stated his preference for Norshahrul Idlan Talaha to partner him attack.
Harimau Malaya have lost four of five international friendlies under the guidance of head coach Dollah Salleh since his appointment in June, with their latest loss an embarrassing 3-1 defeat in Hanoi on Sunday at the hands of Suzuki Cup co-hosts Vietnam.
Amri, who was part of the team that won Malaysia's only ASEAN title back in 2010 is unperturbed by his side's negative results and is determined to put things right when the tournament kicks off this Sunday, with an opening game against Radojko Avramovic's Myanmar in Group B.
"We were in a similar situation in the 2010 edition of the tournament. No one gave us a chance but we ended up winning it," the 33-year-old Amri, who missed the 2012 Suzuki Cup due to personal reasons, told The Star. "I have a good feeling that we can overcome this poor string of results when the tournament begins. We may just end up winning it again."
With Dollah opting for Amri, Norshahrul, Safee Sali and Manaf Mamat in attack, the quartet have only scored six times in five matches and have failed to deliver the goals expected of them.
Besides Amri, the other three strikers have not been in good form throughout the domestic season and with Myanmar coming up in three days time, the pint-size forward has stated his preferred partner in attack.
"The run-up to the Suzuki Cup may not have been ideal but, on the positive side, we have improved a lot," he added. "I'm ready to play with anyone in attack, although I seem to click well with Norshahrul. Anyway, we have other options and it's up to the coach to decide."
Malaysia kick off their 2014 AFF Suzuki Cup campaign with the opener against Myanmar before taking on Thailand (Nov. 26) and co-hosts Singapore (Nov. 29) as they seek to win their second ASEAN title in five years.