Sanjar reveals why he couldn’t resist the M-League

Sadriddin, Farhod and Lutfulla had played here with T-Team and Terengganu. They told me about their good experience here and the football development in Malaysia is good. Sanjar Shaakhmedov

PETALING JAYA: Terengganu’s new Uzbekistani midfielder Sanjar Shaakhmedov says his decision to play in the M-League was strongly influenced by his former teammates.

Three of his ex-teammates with Lokomotiv Tashkent – Sadriddin Abdulaev, Farhod Tadjiev and Lutfulla Turaev – who had played in the M-League convinced Shaakhmedov that playing in Malaysia would be good for his career.

Midfielder Abdulaev featured for T-Team in 2015, striker Tadjiev played for T-Team in 2015 and 2017 while central midfielder Turaev played under Irfan Bakti at Felda United in 2015 before joining Terengganu in 2016.

Shaakhmedov, who was given a rousing welcome at the Sultan Mahmud Airport in Kuala Terengganu on Sunday, said he is touched by the passion showed by the Turtles fans.

“Sadriddin, Farhod and Lutfulla had played here with T-Team and Terengganu. They told me about their good experience here and the football development in Malaysia is good,” said the 28-year-old, who is expected to help the team win silverware after they ended the 2018 season empty-handed.

Terengganu finished fifth in the Super League and were knocked out in the third round of the FA Cup.

They finished runners-up in the Malaysia Cup.

“I hope to bring the team to the next level. The conditions might be different here but it’s not a problem because I have until February to do it.

“I want to play better than how I played in Uzbekistan because I’m an import player here and I hope to win a trophy.”

Shaakhmedov is expected to make his debut for Terengganu in a friendly against Besut District Council (BDC) at the Besut District Council field today.

The Turtles started their pre-season training early last month and retained most of last season’s players including imports Lee Tuck of England, Ivory Coast’s Kipre Tchetche, Cambodian Thierry Chantha Bin and Igor Zonjic of Serbia.

The team will have a pre-season tour in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, from Jan 13-18.

They are scheduled to play top Vietnamese side Ho Chi Minh, Binh Duong and amateur side Troung Giang.