Kim Swee may lose his job as TMJ cracks the whip
PETALING JAYA: The writing’s on the wall!
National coach Datuk Ong Kim Swee and Under-22 German coach Frank Bernhardt could be on their way out.
The Football Association of Malaysia’s (FAM) new president Tunku Mahkota Johor (TMJ) Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim is set to crack the whip and implement changes in the coaching set-up ahead of the 2019 Asian Cup qualifying tournament and the Kuala Lumpur SEA Games.
The 32-year-old owner of Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) who will assume the FAM presidency at the FAM Congress today, had openly criticised the national body for appointing the two coaches.
Former international Kim Swee came under fire for the national team’s dismal showing in the AFF Suzuki Cup last year, when they failed to get past the group stage.
Kim Swee has a contract until the end of the year and said business will go on as usual to prepare the team for the Asian Cup qualifiers.
“I have a contract and I will honour it. If FAM want me to continue ... I will serve them. Otherwise they can terminate my contract. I am a professional,” said Kim Swee, whose last success was winning the SEA Games gold medal in Jakarta in 2011.
In the Asian Cup qualifiers, Malaysia will play North Korea in the opening Group B match at a neutral venue on June 11 after relations between the two nations soured over a diplomatic incident at an airport in Kuala Lumpur last month. Malaysia also have Lebanon and Hong Kong for company.
At the Congress, three heavyweights will contest for the two deputy presidents’ posts.
FA of Selangor (FAS) president Datuk Seri Subahan Kamal, who is also the Malaysian Hockey Confederation ( MHC) president, is back in the fray after losing the No. 2 seat at the last elections (2014).
The other contenders are Datuk Wira Mohd Yusoff Mahadi and incumbent Datuk Seri Afandi Hamzah.
The fight for the FAM president’s post proved to be an anti-climax following Ketereh MP Tan Sri Annuar Musa’s pull-out from the two-horse race against Tunku Ismail on Thursday.