SHAH ALAM: New Selangor skipper Asrarudin Putra Omar is ready to put a nightmarish year behind him as he seeks to guide the Red Giants back to glory.

The versatile defender not only missed featuring for the national team in last year’s AFF Suzuki Cup with a knee injury but also suffered another empty-handed season with the Red Giants.

Asrarudin joined Selangor in 2007 and went on to win the FA Cup (2009) and the Super League (2009, 2010).

“I had a disappointing season last year. I was out of the national and Selangor teams through injury,” Asrarudin said after watching the unveiling of Selangor’s new jersey at the Shah Alam Stadium yesterday.

“I want to thank the Selangor FA for having faith in my ability to skipper the team. It’s a great honour and I promise to lead by example.”

The 24-year-old Asrarudin, who played at leftback last season, will be paired up with Lebanon’s Ramez Dayoub in the heart of the Selangor defence.

Asrarudin also believes that coach Irfan Bakti’s target of getting past the quarter-final stage in the AFC Cup this season “is achievable”.

The Klang Valley giants have been drawn with Tampines Rovers, East Bengal and Saigon Xuan Thanh in Group H of the AFC Cup. They’ll begin their campaign against India’s East Bengal at the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata on Feb 27.

“We have a younger side this season but we’re all fired up to do well in the regional level,” he said.

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