PETALING JAYA, March 1 — National footballers welcome Malaysia’s interest to co-host the upcoming AFF Cup (November 19 — December 17), saying it will boost the team’s spirits in many ways as they bid to restore pride in the team.
The FA of Malaysia (FAM) yesterday announced their interest to host the regional tournament after co-hosts Philippines pulled out due to contractual problems with the stadium that was scheduled to host the tournament.
Myanmar is the other hosts for this year’s edition.
“The players will be gunning to win the tournament if we are selected as hosts. I, for one, would be fired up to perform in front of my home fans and do the country proud. It’s been awhile since we tasted success and playing at home would benefit us greatly,” said Kelantan captain Mohd Badhri Radzi, whose thoughts were echoed by Pahang winger D. Saarvindran.
“This is a great opportunity for the team, especially the young players who will eager to prove their talent on home soil. Everyone wants to play in their home country. I was upset that I could not feature in the SEA Games next year (due to being overage), but this will be another chance for me to play for the country in Malaysia,” said Saarvindran.
FAM deputy president Datuk Seri Afandi Hamzah announced Malaysia’s decision to bid for the Cup, which Malaysia won in 2010 at the council meeting yesterday.
“Our competitors Vietnam and Singapore have hosted the last edition, so we hope our request to host the tournament will be given serious consideration. If we get the hosting rights, it will mostly likely happen in Kuala Lumpur as we have a good venue in the Shah Alam Stadium,” said Afandi.
Malaysia last played co-host with Thailand in 2012, which saw Singapore crowned champions.
A decision on the Philippines’ replacement will most likely be made at the next AFF council meeting in Vietnam on March 12.
Other developments also saw the national body rejects its president Tengku Adbullah Shah’s resignation, citing the administrators still need the Pahang Crown Prince’s stewardship.
The president reiterated his decision to resign in November following Malaysia’s disastrous outing at the 2018 World Cup/2019 Asian Cup qualifiers, which saw them suffer humiliating defeats to Palestine and United Arab Emirates.
“With this being the first season in privatisation, we still need his leadership to guide FAM. If he still insists on quitting, then we will need to assess the situation again,” said Afandi.
