New Zealand vs Malaysia Prediction, Preview, Lineups and Team News | International Friendlies, October 14, 2024

Preview

• Date: Monday, October 14
• Kick-off Time: 6:00 am GMT
• Venue: North Harbour Stadium, North Shore, New Zealand

New Zealand and Malaysia will be locking horns with each other on Monday morning in a friendly encounter in New Zealand. Both sides will be eager to play out a competitive and professional match as they prepare themselves for the next round of international fixtures in November. The New Zealand vs Malaysia fixture might be a little low on intensity due to it being a friendly encounter with no incentive other than national pride to play for.

The New Zealand National Team was involved in a comfortable 3-0 victory over Tahiti in the FIFA World Cup Qualification OFC on Friday. The victory has ensured the nation the top spot in Group B of the second round of the qualifiers. New Zealand has managed some impressive results lately against individually superior teams. Draws against the likes of Ireland and the USA have built up the confidence in the squad. A friendly matchup against Malaysia will be a good way to close out the October round of fixtures.

Malaysia narrowly missed out on qualification to the third round of the AFC FIFA World Cup qualifiers. The Malaysians finished third in their group losing out on the second place by a single point. It was a harsh reality check for the national side. The country will now have to wait until December for the next bit of competitive action. Malaysia has won its last two friendlies against the Philippines and Lebanon with an aggregate score of 3-1.

New Zealand National Football Team News

New Zealand is coached by English manager, Darren Bazeley. He has been at the post since March 2023. Bazeley likes to set his XI in an orthodox 4-2-3-1 formation. There are reportedly no fitness worries from the New Zealand camp.

Malaysia National Football Team News

Malaysia, on the other hand, takes up a 4-3-3 shape as coached by manager, Pan-Gon Kim. The coach will be looking to experiment with his choices and options in the upcoming friendly encounters.

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New Zealand vs Malaysia Predicted Lineups

New Zealand National Football Team Predicted Lineup (4-3-3)

Goalkeeper: Crocombe

Defenders: Payne, Bindon, Pijnaker, Cacace

Midfielders: Garbett, Rufer, Stamenic

Forwards: Just, Old, Wood

Malaysia Predicted National Football Team Lineup (4-3-3)

Goalkeeper: Ghani

Defenders: Davies, Mazlan, Tan, Corbin-Ong

Midfielders: Rasid, Laine, Rashid

Forwards: Cools, Josue, Endrick

New Zealand vs Malaysia H2H Record

New Zealand and Malaysia have faced each other twice in the past. Both encounters were friendlies and on both occasions, New Zealand emerged triumphant.

Key Players to Watch in New Zealand vs Malaysia

Chris Wood (New Zealand)

Unsurprisingly, Chris Wood is the player to look out for the New Zealand National Team. Wood found the back of the net against Tahiti in the 3-0 victory. The 32-year-old has been in stupendous form for Nottingham Forest this season with with four goals from seven matches in the Premier League. Chris Wood is also the captain of his country and has performed his responsibilities and duties very well so far. He has 34 goals in 74 matches for New Zealand, making him the top goalscorer for his country.

New Zealand vs Malaysia Prediction

New Zealand has a perfect head-to-head record over Malaysia and nothing suggests that will change on Monday. The hosts are in a fine run of form and have enough quality to run over Malaysia.

Predicted Score: New Zealand 2-0 Malaysia

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