Latest news with #CentralAsianFootballAssociation
New Straits Times
a day ago
- Sport
- New Straits Times
'Cheaper for Harimau Malaya to go to Singapore than Dushanbe?
KUALA LUMPUR: For years, Harimau Malaya lamented that no top teams want to play them because of their "low" standard. Now ironically, Malaysia withdrew from the Central Asian Football Association (CAFA) Nations Cup after accepting a first ever invitation. And now, there is speculation that Malaysia may play Singapore instead during the September Fifa window. Malaysia still want to play their neighbours from across the Causeway — again, again and again? Singapore as replacement for higher ranked teams like Tajikistan, Afghanistan and Iran, who are going to the 2026 World Cup? Football legend Datuk Jamal Nasir Ismail finds this purported U-turn from Central Asia to Southeast Asia baffling. "They don't want to play in a good tournament. What's the strategy? There must be something that has led to this," said Jamal. It was reported that the national team will instead hold a training camp in Kuala Lumpur from Sept 1–9, while a friendly with Singapore was being considered. Jamal said the national team could be trying to save costs as going to Singapore instead of Dushanbe (for the Nations Cup) is cheaper. "Is it because of financial constraints? When going there (Nations Cup), you have to pay this and that, flights are expensive, but here (Singapore) is not that expensive. "They should come out with a press conference to explain and not just keep quiet," he added. Jamal also found it hard to accept the reasons for Malaysia's withdrawal — travel logistics, transit fatigue and the unavailability of overseas-based players. "These are not good excuses, and if there are transits, then go earlier and you can recover. Not a plausible excuse. "Even when they talk about overseas-based players who aren't available, do they think that only players like Imanol Machuca, Facundo Garces and Rodrigo Holgado are good and the rest aren't? I think netizens will think the same way, too," said Jamal.
New Straits Times
3 days ago
- Sport
- New Straits Times
'Harimau's overreliance on heritage players exposes structural flaws'
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's withdrawal from the Central Asian Football Association (CAFA) Nations Cup has exposed two deep-rooted problems within the national team setup — poor internal structure and overdependence on heritage or naturalised players. This was stated by football legend Datuk Jamal Nasir following Malaysia's eyebrow-raising pullout from the Nations Cup. Jamal expressed his concern over the way Harimau Malaya is being managed. He described the current structure as uncoordinated and overly reliant on individuals instead of a unified system. There has been backlash from fans after head coach Peter Cklamovski — , instead of the national team CEO, Rob Friend or deputy CEO Stanley Bernard — announced Malaysia's withdrawal. "Harimau Malaya are 'so-called' privatised and managed by certain individuals. So if the structure is haywire, it's not about FAM, but within Harimau Malaya itself," he said. "Why doesn't the CEO speak? Why always the head coach? Perhaps something is going on in management that we don't understand." Jamal said a proper national team setup should not be thrown into disarray just because a few key players (Rodrigo Holgado, Imanol Machuca, Facundo Garces and Gabriel Palmero) were unavailable. "Why must we focus on just three or unavailable four players? Whether the tournament is inside or outside the FIFA calendar shouldn't be the issue. Unless we don't have a team at all, this shouldn't be a problem," he said. Jamal feels that Malaysia's dependency on naturalised players is making the team fragile and unsustainable in the long run. "We can't just rely on naturalised or heritage players all the time, they have their commitments too," he said. "We need to believe in the other players. When certain players can't come, we collapse. It shows a lack of trust in the rest of the squad." He viewed the Nations Cup as an ideal platform to build the Malaysia squad, especially against quality opponents like Iran, Tajikistan and Afghanistan, and prepare for the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers. "We need to be brave. Don't be scared to lose. This is the time to see our strengths and test ourselves competitively." Jamal questioned the decision-making on the withdrawal and the handling of the affair. "When the invitation came, you need to sit down and plan properly, whether you can play or not, whether your players can be released or not," he said. "Only when that's confirmed, then send the letter of confirmation to CAFA. Don't confirm first, then only ask questions later. That's unorganised. It opens the door for criticism that always goes unanswered."
New Straits Times
3 days ago
- Sport
- New Straits Times
Harimau Malaya's 'haywire' management
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's withdrawal from the Central Asian Football Association (CAFA) Nations Cup has exposed two deep-rooted problems within the national team setup — poor internal structure and overdependence on heritage or naturalised players. This was stated by football legend Datuk Jamal Nasir following Malaysia's eyebrow-raising pullout from the Nations Cup. Jamal expressed his concern over the way Harimau Malaya is being managed. He described the current structure as uncoordinated and overly reliant on individuals instead of a unified system. There has been backlash from fans after head coach Peter Cklamovski — instead of the national team CEO, Rob. Friend or deputy CEO Stanley Bernard — announced Malaysia's withdrawal. "Harimau Malaya are 'so-called' privatised and managed by certain individuals. So if the structure is haywire, it's not about FAM, but within Harimau Malaya itself," he said. "Why doesn't the CEO speak? Why always the head coach? Perhaps something is going on in management that we don't understand." Jamal said a proper national team setup should not be thrown into disarray just because a few key players (Rodrigo Holgado, Imanol Machuca, Facundo Garces and Gabriel Palmero) were unavailable. "Why must we focus on just three or four unavailable players? "Whether the tournament is inside or outside the FIFA calendar shouldn't be the issue. "Unless we don't have a team at all, this shouldn't be a problem," he said. Jamal feels that Malaysia's dependency on naturalised players is making the team fragile and unsustainable in the long run. "We can't just rely on naturalised or heritage players all the time, they have their commitments too," he said. "We need to believe in the other players. When certain players can't come, we collapse. "It shows a lack of trust in the rest of the squad." He viewed the Nations Cup as an ideal platform to build the Malaysia squad, especially against quality opponents like Iran, Tajikistan and Afghanistan, and prepare for the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers. "We need to be brave. Don't be scared to lose. This is the time to see our strengths and test ourselves competitively." Jamal questioned the decision-making on the withdrawal and the handling of the affair. "When the invitation came, you need to sit down and plan properly, whether you can play or not, whether your players can be released or not," he said. "Only when that's confirmed, then send the letter of confirmation to CAFA.
The Star
5 days ago
- Sport
- The Star
Central Asian Football Association expresses regret over Malaysia's late withdrawal from Nations Cup
PETALING JAYA: The Central Asian Football Association (CAFA) has expressed regret over Malaysia's late withdrawal from the Nations Cup, releasing an official statement clarifying key details surrounding the tournament's scheduling and format. The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) had earlier announced their decision to pull out of the competition, citing player release challenges due to the event falling just outside the FIFA international match calendar. The national team, led by Australian coach Peter Cklamovski, pointed to issues involving player availability, especially those based in foreign leagues such as Spain, Argentina, Japan and Colombia. However, CAFA responded on Wednesday (July 16), saying the tournament dates had never been changed and had been communicated well in advance. "Malaysia's participation had been confirmed well in advance, with full awareness of the tournament dates (Aug 29-Sept 8), and those dates have never been changed from the beginning," CAFA stated. "Unfortunately, this late withdrawal has caused certain disruptions to the ongoing organisational processes, particularly given the advanced stage of planning and preparations." CAFA also addressed the concerns surrounding player availability, highlighting that flexibility in player registration was already built into the tournament regulations. "The final registration of players — selected from a preliminary list of 35 — can be submitted on a match-by-match basis. This allows for maximum flexibility, including the possibility of key players joining the team for subsequent matches." Despite the setback, CAFA reaffirmed their commitment to delivering a competitive and high-quality tournament, thanking participating nations for their cooperation. "We remain committed to delivering a high-quality and competitive tournament for the people of Central Asia and beyond."
The Star
5 days ago
- Sport
- The Star
Harimau Malaya won't peter out in test against WC-bound Iran
PETALING JAYA: The national football team are in for a trial by fire at the Central Asian Football Association (CAFA) Nations Cup after being drawn into a challenging group. But head coach Peter Cklmovski hopes the team would come out of the ''test'' stronger and wiser against some of Asia's best at the Hisor Central Stadium in Hisar, Tajikistan. from Aug 28-Sept 8. The Harimau Malaya have been drawn into Group B together with world No. 18 Iran, Tajikistan (No. 104) and Afghanistan (No. 160) in the draw conducted on Thursday. They will play hosts Tajikistan first on Aug 29, followed by Iran (Sept 1) and Afghanistan (Sept 4). Cklamovaki is looking forward to the meeting against the strongest team Iran. 'We get to open the tournament against Tajikistan. We are looking forward to an exciting game,' said the Australian. 'It would be a hostile environment and the atmosphere would be electric. Good test away from home,' said the Australian. 'The group stage format has short turnarounds between games. Game two is against Iran, ranked 18th in the world, and a team in the World Cup. Massive challenge and opportunity for us. 'We will use it to benchmark ourselves against the best. We want to test our football against theirs and try the hardest we can. Then we play against Afghanistan.' Iran, known as Team Melli, have qualified for the 2026 World Cup, which is their seventh time. The Middle East nation also won the Asian Cup three times in 1968, 1972 and 1976 and boast some world-class talents in their squad. In attack, they have Inter Milan striker Mehdi Taremi, and in midfield, they have Heerenveen winger Alireza Jahanbaksh. In defence, Dinamo Zagreb's Sadegh Moharrami is the centreback and Alireza Beiranvand, known for having the farthest distance throw of a football in the world (61m), remains their top goalkeeper. Malaysia, ranked 131 in the world, will surely hope to produce some good performances in Tajikistan is order to move up the world rankings. The tournament experience would also be the best preparation before they take on Laos in the 2027 Asian Cup third-round qualifiers in October. Malaysia under Cklamovski have impressed this year, especially in the 2027 Asian Cup third-round qualifiers, where they have started their campaign unbeaten, beating Nepal 2-0 and Vietnam 4-0.
