State to prioritise nurturing local football talents
State youth, sports and entrepreneurship committee chairman Mohd Najwan Halimi said though recruiting heritage players with international exposure could improve the performance of Selangor Football Club (SFC) at both domestic and regional levels, it risked increasing the team's expenses and negatively impacting local football's identity.
Heritage players are those with blood ties to Malaysia.
'SFC believes that the hybrid model is more sustainable, as it can increase the team's competitiveness while preserving its identity among Selangor folk,' he said during the Selangor State Assembly sitting at Bangunan Dewan Negeri Selangor in Shah Alam.
Mohd Najwan: Hybrid model can increase Selangor Football Club's competitiveness.
He was responding to a question by Noor Najhan Mohamad Salleh (PN-Sementa) on whether Selangor government and SFC would consider recruiting heritage players from Europe to enhance the state's football team to a level that could win the Malaysian League (M-League).
Mohd Najwan said various initiatives were currently underway to bridge the disparity in skill levels between heritage and local players.
'Selangor Football Association, through various development programmes for coaches, referees and amateur players as well as state-level football leagues for various age groups, has built a strong foundation for nurturing local talents.
'SFC, on the other hand, focuses on talent scouting and development of elite-level coaches.
'This ensures that the best local players across all age groups can be identified and exposed to high-quality training.
'SFC also fosters strategic relationships with professional football clubs in Asia and Europe so that the best players in Selangor can gain international exposure to bridge the gap between local and international players,' he said.
On July 9, the Malaysian Football League announced an amendment to the foreign player ruling for the M-League 2025-2026 season, reducing the number of foreign players allowed on the pitch to six, from the previously announced seven.
The new season is slated to start on Aug 8.
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