HODAK UNDER INVESTIGATION

FAM secretary-general Stuart confirms it’s for his comments made in Japan

THE FA of Malaysia (FAM) confirmed yesterday that they are investigating national Under-19 coach Bojan Hodak for his recent criticisms of the country’s development structure.

A showcause letter was issued by the national body to the Croatian to explain his comments. Hodak needs to respond by the end of next week.

Hodak stepped on the toes of FAM at the Sanix Cup in Fukuoka, Japan, last month. Frustrated with his team’s performance, he reportedly said that Malaysia’s development system was lacking in some aspects. His team finished 12th overall.

However, FAM secretary-general Stuart Ramalingam stressed

that action, if taken at all, will be solely for his comments and it will not affect his current job.

Hodak’s contract expires on July 31 and under the terms, FAM need to make a new offer three months before its expiry.

“A showcause letter has been issued. We just want to him explain his comments in Japan and once we have received it, we will deliberate and decide on the next course of action.

“He is an employee of FAM and basically, there are proper channels within the national body for him to vent his frustrations or offer suggestions.

“We are treating it as an internal matter, and it will not affect his current job.

“It is for the national teams’ committee and other related committees to review his team’s performance. At FAM, final decisions must be endorsed by the executive committee (exco),” said Stuart.

Stuart said: “FAM will be fair to Hodak. If necessary, we will request video evidence or recordings from the media as evidence.

“It will enable us to analyse the entire interview,” he said.

It is understood that some are plotting to get rid of Hodak as the former Kelantan coach is not well-liked.

In Hodak’s defence, he has produced good results for Malaysia.

In his first assignment, Hodak guided Malaysia to second spot in the 2017 AFF Under-19 Championship in Yangon. Then his boys qualified for the AFC Under-19 Championship by finishing runners-up to South Korea in the qualifiers the same year.

Last year, he took them to the AFF Under-19 title in Indonesia for the first time, and Malaysia also had a decent run at the AFC Championship.

Stuart also touched on why FAM offloaded two assistant coaches — Aminuddin Hussin (senior team assistant coach) and Nenad Bacina (Hodak’s assistant).

“We decided not to extend their contracts after taking into account several factors — number of tournaments and total staff of each team.

“Of course, our current budget played a role in this,” Stuart added.

The national teams’ committee meeting will only be held after the draw of the 2022 World Cupcum-2023 Asian Cup on April 17.

“A meeting will be called after the draw to discuss our teams’ plans. If it is necessary, issues pertaining to Ong Kim Swee’s youth squad and the Under-19 team will also be discussed,” Stuart added.