SUBANG JAYA – The national players are not affected by recent issues plaguing the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM), says wing wizard Muhammad Faisal Abdul Halim.
The 26-year-old, affectionately known as “Mickey”, said their sole focus is on improving their on-field performances, more so since Harimau Malaya lost both the home and away matches against Oman in the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers/2027 Asian Cup Qualifiers in March.
“If anything, any comment (regarding the issue) should come from the top management. As players, when fielded, we play.
“All I can say is that (head) coach (Kim) Pan-gon is the best, (while FAM president Datuk) Hamidin (Mohd Amin) carries out his responsibilities to the best of his ability. Issues arise when we lose but there are none when we win,” he said during a media session at the launch of his clothing brand, FH7, here today.
Recent headlines have been dominated by the emergence of a poison-pen letter criticising the leadership and management of the governing body, with calls for Hamidin to step down after six years at the helm.
The national football arena was further rocked by reports that Pan-gon and his coaching staff had sent a letter to the FAM, indicating their readiness to quit the national team if their services were no longer needed.
Pan-gon’s men suffered two consecutive 2-0 defeats in Muscat on March 21 and at the Bukit Jalil National Stadium on March 26, respectively.
These losses saw Malaysia drop to third place in Group D, trailing Kyrgyzstan and Oman, who both have nine points to be joint top, while Taiwan propped up the table without any points.
Harimau Malaya have two crucial Group D matches left against Kyrgyzstan and Taiwan in June as they bid to qualify for the third round of the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers and secure an early spot in the 2027 Asian Cup as one of the top two teams in the group. – May 1, 2024