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Kuala Lumpur (AFP) – A drive to ramp up Malaysia’s footballing fortunes with naturalised players has failed, critics say, with the national team no nearer a first World Cup appearance and soul-searching about the state of the game in the country.
Football is among the most popular sports in the nation of more than 30 million people but at international level Malaysia are minnows — 154th in the FIFA rankings, a spot below tiny Andorra.
Long-suffering Malaysian fans had high hopes when football authorities launched the naturalisation programme in 2018, ahead of qualifying for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, and several overseas-born players were handed citizenship.
But the scheme was put on hold in August after Malaysia’s tilt at the World Cup came up short once more, with naturalised players taking some of the flak.
Already naturalised players can still play for the country but there will be no new ones coming through the door in the near future.
Santokh Singh, who played for the national side in the 1970s and 1980s — better times — said there should be a renewed focus on training local players.
“We’ve got so many good local players who are capable of performing better than the foreigners… they are not getting a chance to play,” the 69-year-old told AFP.
“Naturalisation of players is stupid.”
Malaysia is among a number of countries that have sought to raise the level of their national squad by giving foreign players citizenship.
From China and Japan to Mexico and even Spain, it has become a growing trend, with footballers from Brazil particularly popular.
But it has provoked controversy, with some, such as wealthy Qatar, accused of stacking their teams with foreigners with little connection to the country they are representing.&nbsp;

– ‘Invaders from Brazil’ –

In 2007, FIFA’s then-president Sepp Blatter warned about “invaders from Brazil” flooding national sides and the governing body has tightened the rules.
Those without ancestral connections to a country must have been resident there for at least five years before qualifying to play for its national side.&nbsp;
In Malaysia’s case, Gambia-born Mohamadou Sumareh was the first player given citizenship as part of the naturalisation drive, making his debut for the national side in 2018.&nbsp;
He began playing for Malaysian clubs in 2013 and is currently a winger for Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT), who won the top-flight Super League eight times from 2014.
He was followed by Liridon Krasniqi, born in the former Yugoslavia, and Brazil-born Guilherme de Paula.
More common are players who grew up overseas but have a Malaysian parent and decide to return to Malaysia, where they stand a better chance of playing international football.&nbsp;
The naturalisation project faced fierce criticism after Malaysia lost in World Cup qualifiers to Vietnam and the UAE in June last year, dashing their hopes of reaching Qatar.&nbsp;
Two months later the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) said the scheme was being put on hold.&nbsp;
The body plans to “conduct further studies into several aspects of the programme”, FAM general-secretary Mohamad Saifuddin Abu Bakar told AFP.

–&nbsp;Deep-rooted problems –

Some believe Malaysia should focus on solving deep-rooted problems, rather than emphasising too heavily the failings of the naturalisation project.&nbsp;
“I think there are more important structural issues to bring long-term success,” Steve Darby, a coach and football consultant who spent years working in Asia, including in Malaysia, told AFP.&nbsp;
“Improve training facilities and also stadium pitches.”
While they have never been serious rivals to the region’s best sides, like Japan and South Korea, Malaysia’s national team has seen better days.
The country qualified for the Moscow Olympics in 1980, but withdrew when Malaysia joined a US-led boycott of the Games in protest at the invasion of Afghanistan.&nbsp;
The national side won berths in the Asian Cup, which pits the region’s top national teams against one another every four years, in 1976 and 1980.&nbsp;
Not everyone is critical of the naturalisation project, believing it can have good results if part of a broader strategy.
B. Sathiananthan, Malaysia’s national coach from 2007-2009, said it was understandable that coaches sometimes looked to the policy. &nbsp;
“If you are given a two-year contract, do you think you can wait for local players to hit form?” he said.

Malaysia's 'stupid' football naturalisation drive gets red card

Malaysia's 'stupid' football naturalisation drive gets red card - World Soccer Talk

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Kuala Lumpur (AFP) – Malaysian football fans were elated Tuesday to wake up to the news that their countryman had won FIFA’s goal of the year award for his extraordinary swerving free-kick.
Midfielder Mohamad Faiz Subri’s cracker for Penang state in the Malaysian Super League in February, reminiscent of the swerving thunderbolt by Brazil’s Roberto Carlos against France in 1997, received almost 60 percent of the global vote on the FIFA website.
Dressed in a tuxedo, the footballer thanked his coach, team and his family as he accepted the accolade at the star-studded FIFA awards ceremony in Zurich on Monday night, the first Asian to win the famous Puskas Award.&nbsp;
“Honestly, it never crossed my mind that I would arrive at this level and be able to stand tall among world class footballers in this amazing place,” he said.&nbsp;
There was a light-hearted moment when the player fumbled with his phone on stage as he searching for his speech.&nbsp;
Co-host Hollywood star Eva Longoria playfully quipped: “He’s checking his text” to laughter from the crowd.
On Instagram, Faiz posted a picture of himself together with Manchester United legend Alex Ferguson and tweeted another with Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo.
Malaysian fans took to Twitter to congratulate Faiz and said he had made the country proud. Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak led the tributes.&nbsp;
“Congratulations… your success in winning the award will bring inspiration to Malaysian footballers,” he wrote on his Facebook page.&nbsp;
Footage of the 29-year-old’s extraordinary goal from 35 metres went viral last year, making him a sensation in football-crazy Malaysia.
Ten FIFA Puskas Award 2016 finalists, chosen from thousands of goals scored around the world between September 2015 and September 2016, were revealed in November.&nbsp;
A month later, FIFA announced that Brazil’s Marlone and Venezuela’s woman footballer Stephanie Roche were joining Faiz on the three-goal shortlist, with the Malaysian’s outrageous free-kick garnering more votes than the other two goals put together.

Malaysia joy at FIFA goal of the year award

Malaysia joy at FIFA goal of the year award - World Soccer Talk

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Kuala Lumpur (AFP) – A Malaysian footballer has beaten the likes of Neymar and Messi to score a place in FIFA’s shortlist for top three goals of the year.&nbsp;
Midfielder Mohamad Faiz Subri’s cracker of a free kick for Penang state in the Malaysian Super League in February was reminiscent of the swerving thunderbolt by Brazil legend Roberto Carlos against France in 1997.
Footage of the 29-year-old scoring a viciously swerving goal from 35 metres (115 feet) out has gone viral, making him a sensation in football-crazy Malaysia.
“This is something I will never forget and it motivates me to improve my game further,” Faiz told AFP on Thursday.
“Football brings people together and football supporters here are of many races, Chinese, Indians and Malays, and they voted for my goal,” he added.
Ten FIFA Puskas Award 2016 finalists, chosen from thousands of goals scored around the world between September 2015 and September 2016, were revealed last month.&nbsp;
FIFA announced that Brazil’s Marlone and Venezuela’s woman footballer Stephanie Roche were joining Faiz on the shortlist.&nbsp;
The winner will be announced on January 9 in Zurich. For now, Malaysia’s football hero is playing it cool.
“It’s not time for partying yet,” Faiz said. “Let’s wait till January 9.”

Malaysia player beats Messi, Neymar to FIFA shortlist

Malaysia player beats Messi, Neymar to FIFA shortlist - World Soccer Talk

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Kuala Lumpur (AFP) – Malaysian football authorities on Wednesday called on a former FIFA official to provide evidence after he claimed the country had become the hub for match-fixing in Southeast Asia.
Chris Eaton, an independent industry consultant and FIFA’s former security chief, said Tuesday that Malaysia had overtaken Singapore in match-fixing following a crackdown in the city-state.
Eaton was speaking at a sports betting forum in Singapore on Monday.
“We urge Eaton to furnish us with evidence,” Hamidin Amin, the secretary-general of the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM), told AFP.
Hamidin also said Eaton should be “more professional” by providing evidence and information to authorities in Malaysia, adding that Eaton had made similar allegations before without substantiation.
Malaysia’s top police official Khalid Abu Bakar said on Tuesday that authorities had received no information related to Eaton’s allegation, either from FIFA or the Asian Football Confederation.&nbsp;
Malaysian football, however, has been plagued by match-fixing over the years, and betting syndicates from the country have also been active overseas.
In one of the biggest cases, a 1994 scandal in Malaysia saw 21 players and coaches sacked and 58 players suspended.
In 1999, four men linked to a Malaysian-based betting syndicate were jailed for three years for plotting to sabotage floodlights ahead of Charlton’s match against Liverpool that year as part of a match-fixing plot.&nbsp;
In 2012, FAM suspended 18 youth players and banned a coach for life for match-fixing. The following year, a Malaysian club suspended all of its coaches and officials after a string of suspiciously heavy defeats.

Malaysia calls for proof after match-fixing claim

Malaysia calls for proof after match-fixing claim - World Soccer Talk

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