Nam dinh: Harimau Malaya wingback Declan Lambert admits that he and his teammates will be playing for national pride when they take on Vietnam in their last Group F match in the 2027 Asian Cup Qualifiers.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, Lambert stated that although Malaysia is already out of the running for the 2027 Asian Cup Finals, the players remain committed to giving their best effort in training to impress the coaching staff. "It's a tough one to take (being out of the Finals), but it's still an important game for us to show that we can still compete against - and beat - these teams despite us being out. (It's) also to show our pride as Malaysians," Lambert expressed in a video clip shared by the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM).

Malaysia's hopes of participating in the Asian Cup Finals for the second consecutive time on merit were dashed after the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) docked points from the team. On the other hand, Vietnam has secured their place in the 2027 Asian Cup Finals, leading Group F with 15 points. Malaysia follows in second place with nine points, while Laos and Nepal occupy the third and fourth spots, respectively, with three points each.

The AFC Disciplinary and Ethics Committee recently determined that the FAM had breached Article 56 of the AFC Disciplinary and Ethics Code. This breach was due to the fielding of ineligible players in two Asian Cup 2027 qualifying matches against Nepal and Vietnam.