No excuses, FAM

AFF CUP: National body to blame for not getting the best players for campaign

THE FA of Malaysia (FAM) have to shoulder the blame for the AFF Cup debacle. The national body not only failed to act on teams that were hesitant to release players but were also silent when some football officials openly criticised national coach Ong Kim Swee on social media ahead of the assignment.

Malaysia were already fighting a losing battle prior to the AFF Cup as the team were without at least seven players who would have easily made the starting line up in Yangon.

While many are upset with Malaysia’s performance, they should also understand that no team can achieve good results in tournaments without their best players.

FAM officials were too afraid to voice anything despite knowing the team were weakened.

No elected member voiced out as they are too busy safeguarding their positions ahead of the elections in March.

Team manager Datuk Hamidin Mohd Amin chose his words carefully when pressed on issues that affected the team’s results in Yangon but backed Kim Swee to continue as national coach.

“There are always ups and downs in football. Our preparation was good but sometimes things do not go as planned,” said Hamidin yesterday.

“We have to accept that we are not good enough. I don’t think our standard has dropped, though. Except for Thailand, the level of other teams is the same.

“It is just that we had no luck this time.”

But the progress of Myanmar, Vietnam and even Cambodia should serve as a warning to FAM.

Myanmar are using the tournament to prepare for next year’s Sea Games, where 14 players will be eligible for the biennial event while Vietnam and Cambodia are rebuilding their teams for bigger assignments.

These teams have made significant progress while

Malaysia have stagnated despite having a better football structure.

“As for Kim Swee, he has a contract until the end of next year. I will back Kim Swee fully to stay when the exco meets next year to discuss about the national team’s performance in the AFF Cup.

“We gave Kim Swee three targets and he did not meet the one in the AFF Cup.

“However, the exco can still decide on his future before his contract expires,” said Hamidin, who is also the FAM general secretary.

Hamidin is, however, confident the team will be able to achieve the other two targets — qualify for the 2019 Asian Cup and make the top 140 bracket in the Fifa rankings.