SUBANG JAYA, Oct 25 — Regent of Johor, Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim, reportedly said today that he is not affected by criticism blaming him for problems regarding the state of professional football in Malaysia.

According to Free Malaysia Today, he said his involvement in football comes from his love for the sport and desire to see it grow.

“If I don’t keep the engine running, football will fall apart,” he was quoted as saying at a press conference today.

“I have been blamed for Malaysia’s football problems for 13 years. If blaming me helps you to sleep soundly at night, then it’s not a problem,” he reportedly added.

Tunku Ismail said there is no conflict of interest in his support for the national team and that everyone should contribute, adding that more local businesses should help support the game.

He also repotedly said he has no plans to return as president of the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM).

Tunku Ismail criticised FAM’s decision to suspend its secretary-general Noor Azman Rahman on October 17, saying the entire management should be held accountable for the allegedly falsified player documents submitted to Fifa.

Fifa’s Disciplinary Committee fined FAM 350,000 Swiss francs (about RM1.8 million) and suspended seven naturalised players for 12 months after finding that false ancestry records had been used to register them for the national team.

FAM has appealed the sanctions to Fifa’s Appeals Committee, which is expected to deliver its decision by October 30.