KUALA LUMPUR – Former Tajikistan national football head coach Petar Segrt strongly believes that national head coach Kim Pan-gon will be able to lead Harimau Malaya to the World Cup in the years to come.
The 57-year-old Croatian, who has almost three decades of coaching experience, working across Europe and Asia – from the Bundesliga to the Indonesian Premier League – admires the efforts made by Pan-gon in a short period of time since taking on the hot seat.
Pan-gon took over as national head coach from Tan Cheng Hoe in January 2022, and the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) gave him a two-year contract with the option to extend if progress is made.
According to transfermarkt.com statistics, Pan-gon recorded a 57.57% win rate, with 19 wins out of 33 international matches since leading Harimau Malaya.
His most significant achievement was ending Malaysia’s 42-year wait to qualify on merit for the final round of the Asian Cup in Qatar.
Speaking to Scoop from Germany, Segrt said that Malaysian fans should be proud of whatever Pan-gon has achieved for the national side over the years.
“The fans should rally behind him and give him the time he needs to lead the team to greater heights. They have another two games in the 2026 World Cup/2027 Asian Cup qualifier, and we should not count Malaysia out.
“They still have a chance to do well and I believe they can do well with Pan-gon. His tactical knowledge is brilliant, and I’m not going to lie; I had a tough time going against his side when I was with Tajikistan, despite winning the games.
“The fans should trust in his abilities like I trust him, and he will definitely do well in the next two games of the qualifiers,” said Segrt when contacted.
Malaysia currently sits third in Group D of the 2026 World Cup/2027 Asian Cup qualifier with six points.
At the same time, Segrt said that FAM is doing a good job of governing the sport in the country and further commended the standard of the Malaysian Football League.
“I have been following Malaysian football for many years when I was coaching in Indonesia. In my opinion, the Malaysian league is fantastic and, for me, is the best league in the Southeast Asian region.
“The country has so many passionate fans and nice stadiums, and without any doubt, they have all the opportunities to play in the World Cup in the years to come.
“Even Malaysia’s under-23 side has a lot of potential, and they can go places with the right exposure.
“The governing body is doing the right job, and who knows, in the next five to six years, Malaysia can be one of the most fearsome sides in the Asian region,” Segrt added.
Under Segrt’s guidance, Tajikistan recorded 11 wins and seven draws and also lifted the 2022 King’s Cup in Thailand and the 2023 Merdeka Cup in Malaysia.
Aside from Tajikistan, Segrt has also been the head coach for Afghanistan, Georgia, and the Maldives.
He won the South Asian Football Federation Championship with the Maldives in 2018 by defeating India 2-1. – May 1, 2024