PETALING JAYA, April 2 — The national football team thrashed world No 188 Bhutan 7-0 at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil last night and the happiest of the lot seemed to be outgoing Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) president Tengku Mahkota Johor (TMJ), Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim.
A 43-second video posted last night on the Johor Southern Tigers Facebook page shows TMJ laughing as he celebrated his first and only victory as FAM president in about a year.
“Finally my record as a president without a win has ended. I don’t care whether it was against Bhutan or school boys, a win is a win, YES!
“At least there is a record of one win,” said the 34-year-old in the video.
He added: “If you check the record, I’m still the president, only tomorrow will I not be the president.
“One victory, 7-0. Well done Harimau Malaya, thank you.”
Captain Zaquan Adha Abdul Radzak put in a masterclass performance as he hammered in four goals along with goals from strikers Wan Zack Haikal and Syafiq Ahmad and defender Irfan Zakaria.
Zaquan became the first Malaysin to claim a hattrick in international colours since Ahmad Hazwan Bakri scored three against Sri Lanka in a 6-0 victory at the Shah Alam Stadium.
The Johor crown prince has led FAM for a little over a year since March 25 last year.
On March 15, TMJ stunned the local football community when he declared on the Johor Southern Tigers Facebook page that he should step down as president after receiving criticism on social media when Malaysia plunged to a new low of 178th in the Fifa rankings.
On March 25, he officially stepped down from his role as FAM President during a media conference in Johor.
The favourite to take over is FAM’s secretary-general Datuk Hamidin Mohd Amin while English football club owners Tan Sri Tony Fernandes and Tan Sri Vincent Tan are also tipped for the seat.
