A playing tour to Cambodia and a series of friendlies against leading clubs in the country would serve as the best platform for Negeri Sembilan to mount a serious challenge for the Premier League title says head coach Mohd Asri Ninggal.

Mohd Asri said the matches played in Cambodia had also helped the players to blend with the four imports from Japan, England, Serbia and Croatia.

Four matches were played during the tour, twice against Phnom Penh Crown FC (PPCF) and one each against Nagaworld FC and Royal Cambodian Army FC.

"Such high quality matches are important to test various combinations and blend the players together before the M-League kicks off," he told Bernama, here today.

Mohd Asri feels Negeri Sembilan's opening Premier League match against Sabah at the Tuanku Abdul Rahman Stadium in Paroi on Friday, would be vital in the team's efforts to kick off the season with a win.

The four imports in the team are Suzukicastanheira Brunojuinichi (Japan), Lee Andrew Tuck (England), Vedic Nemanja (Serbia) and Simic Marko (Croatia).

He said from the four matches played in Cambodia, Negeri Sembilan beat PPCF twice (5-3 and 2-0), drew 0-0 against Royal Cambodian Army FC and lost 0-1 to Nagaworld FC. - BERNAMA