Malaysia Under-23 head coach Ong Kim Swee has warned his players that they will have to toughen up in the cold conditions when the AFC U23 Championship kicks on in China on Jan. 9.
The Young Tigers have faced freezing temperatures and snowy conditions since their arrival in Nanjing, a huge contrast with steamy Malaysia.
However, the players have come from a frigid camp in South Korea, which should mean that they are now used to the conditions.
A warm-up friendly with Syria in Nanjing was cancelled on Friday due to snow, but Ong insists this is just something they must deal with as the conditions will also affect other countries that are used to warmer weather.
"Our players must not just be physically prepared, but mentally strong, as well to face the bigger challenge of facing superior teams in the championship while playing in very cold weather conditions," Ong told The New Straits Times.
"Other teams taking part in this championship will also have to contend with such cold weather. There were teams that had to cancel their training sessions because of it, but we have to press on and remain focused with our preparations."
While Ong is philosophical about the the impact of the climatic factors, he admitted that the cancellation of the friendly was a blow to his preparations for Malaysia's opener against Iraq on Jan. 10.
"Even though we are disappointed because this friendly match could not be played, it is something that is out of our control because of the uncertain weather conditions," Ong said.
"It does affect our preparations because I wanted to use the match to assess the players.
"Thankfully though, the players have already been put to the test during the three friendly matches played when we were in South Korea for the second phase of centralised training, and I already know what I need to know about our team's strengths and weaknesses."
Following the clash with Iraq on Thursday, the Malaysians continue their Group C campaign against Jordan on Jan. 13 before facing Saudi Arabia on Jan. 16.
In such a challenging group, cold weather adds another hurdle for the Malaysians to overcome.
They must face three strong opponents whose players will be more accustomed to cooler conditions at this time of year, if not the snow, and sub-zero temperatures of China.