Adelaide United will round off its pre-season tour of Malaysia with a match against Penang FA on Saturday night at 10.30pm (ACST).
With the Hyundai A-League 2016/17 season just over a month from kick-off, the Reds’ are being put through their paces in Malaysia to prepare for the upcoming season.
Having already faced Kuala Lumpur FA earlier in the week, United coming away comfortable 3-0 winners, Guillermo Amor’s side will be tested by Malaysian Super League side, Penang FA.
Amor has highlighted the importance that the match will have on the preparations of his side for their coming campaign, saying: “We are expecting a match that will most probably be more difficult than what we faced against Kuala Lumpur a few days ago.
“It’s important for us to prepare all our players for the season in difficult (weather) conditions so that they can improve physically in these moments before the new season.
“We still have a month until we start the A-League and we are here to prepare the team as best we can for another big season.”
Despite Adelaide’s early exit in the Westfield FFA Cup last month, United’s match schedule throughout 2016/17 will be as full as any through the Club’s involvement in the AFC Champions League (ACL).
And Club Captain, Eugene Galekovic, has said his team’s trip to Malaysia is giving them a great understanding of some of the harsh conditions they could face when the ACL starts in February 2017.
“The weather here is good preparation for us because at home we’re just coming out of winter,” Galekvoic said.
“The weather is humid and difficult for us but it’s important for us to get used to it with the Asian Champions League coming up, but also our A-League season.
“We’re enjoying the sunshine and it’s a good change for us.”
Galekovic also mentioned how he and his teammates are expecting to come up against a strong Penang side, which is currently in the middle of their local campaign.
“We’re obviously still in our pre-season and the aim of that is to make sure we prepare as well as we can for the new season and increase our fitness as quickly as possible.
“We’re here to play Penang because we know they’re going to give us a tough match because they’re still in their domestic season.
“The match is going to be difficult and we’ll have to be at our best, but it’s also about making sure we get some minutes under our belt.”
Adelaide United will face Penang FA in a friendly on Saturday, 3 September at Stadium Bandaraya, Penang. Kick-off is at 10.30pm (ACST).
