6 seriously awesome football achievements by Malaysians

So Kelantan recently lost the Malaysia FA cup final to Singapore (Lions XII). If you don’t understand the gravity of that sentence, think about it this way: It’s the ‘MALAYSIA FA CUP’. It went to SINGAPORE. It’s like having them claim nasi lemak is a Singaporean dish, only this time we can’t call Singapore kisau until delusional.

While it’s a sad, sad situation, why not allow ourselves to take our mind off this and take a look at some of the (fairly) feel good moments in Malaysian football!

Because if there’s one magical thing we Malaysians have that seemingly fixes all our problems and is also simultaneously the cause of many of our problems (we’ll get to this part later), it’s Bola. Makan bola, minum bola, tidur bola… you’ve all heard of it.

“But I don’t like football! Let alone Malaysian football!”

Yeah… Say only, but don’t tell me you weren’t proud with our boys when they won the AFF Suzuki Cup in 2010. Y’know, the one that got us the free public holiday?

Admittedly, our boys are not as skilled or lengchai as the big time stars in Barcelona FC, Real Madrid or even, uh, Sparta Prague, but did you know that we’ve got plenty of fun stories to tell about our football journey so far?

“Mana ada?”

Well let’s try to prove you wrong.

 

1. We qualified & played in the Olympics! 

“SuperMokh, Spiderman, Taukeh & the Surging Singh” must sound like the most sewel hipster experimental folk-pop quartet to you young’uns, but these Malaysians made up what is now unanimously known as our Golden Generation in football.

Not only did this team qualify for the 1972 Olympics in West Germany, but after being defeated 0-3 in the opening match against a West German side that featured the likes of legendary Bayern Munich coach Ottmar Hitzfeld, they went on to belasah USA 3-0 in the second match. Malaysia winning against the USA in a soccer match?

“Jangan tipu la dei. USA World Cup regulars kut!”

Actually we also qualified for the 1980 Olympics in USSR, so there ya’ go. We were not only good but CONSISTENT as well. All-caps because it’s a trait we’re severely lacking these days.

 

2. Our boys actually beat the England B-Team in a friendly. 

What if I told you our boys tied a friendly match with England in 1978? And that our dear SuperMokh dribbled past half the team to score? FYI that is an INCREDIBLE feat for anyone, even in today’s time. Serious wei! Check out 0:32 onwards: 

Most of you haven’t even got past that previous question, shocked that we played the national team instead of the current trend of playing English clubs in friendlies. Yes, we were that good. And, that’s the same team that had notable legends in the English Premier League, such as Brian Talbot (Arsenal) & Paul Mariner (Ipswich). #malaysiapowerrrr

“Eh bro where got, last season Man City summer tour. I think this year Man U coming back lor.”

Their coach at the the time, Bobby Robson, was famously seen fuming at his players for the Mokhtar Dahari goal but reserved special praise for him in his post match interview.

Yes, THAT Sir Bobby Robson, the legendary former manager of England! 

In a way, it’s kinda cool that we get to see our big-club heroes up close on their summer tour friendlies here in our kampung, but it does leave a sour taste in your mouth when you consider that Japan & South Korea (teams previously weaker than us) would scoff at the idea.

 

3. A Malaysian in a top European League, enter: Nazmi Faiz

Phew, this one’s a doozy. Hang on.

Lim Teong Kim was the first Malaysian footballer to play professionally in Europe, who subsequently went on to have a successful coaching career in the Bayern Munich youth squad. One of the academy products under his tutelage being Thomas Muller.

Oh, you know, nuthin’ much… only the guy who won the friggin Golden Boot at the World Cup in South Africa!

So understandably, Malaysians held their breaths on 21 May 2012, when our homeboy Nazmi Faiz signed a 3-year contract with Portuguese club, S.C. Beira-Mar after being courted by the Aveiro based club, equal parts nervous & excited for our star to make it big in Europe.

Sadly, I have no wonderful story of Nazmi going on to become the first successful M’sian player in Europe to tell you, because he balik kampung after just 6 months. 🙁

Now here comes the interesting (juicy?) bits. Until a few months back, it was not clear as to why he CANCELLED his contract & came home. In a recent interview, Nazmi has stated that it was financial factors that ended his European adventure early.

We’re not so convinced. In the interview he admits he has regrets that he left too early, so erm he’s not convinced as well? *blurface*

The story was hot at the time because we collectively, as a nation, were FURIOUS that he just wasted a chance of lifetime. Even, Safee Sali chimed in, publicly voicing disappointment:

“Coming back after just six months, this is definitely a backward step as far as his career is concerned.” – Safee Sali

The drama was that he returned because his relationship with his girlfriend was under threat from a fellow national player at the time, Aidil Zafuan. Ambik ko! There are even screengrabs of his public rants on twitter on that site, it’s not pretty. Either that or he just missed the food, and man I can’t blame him there. Nasi Kandar is just too good, bruh.

 

4. Haave you met Malaysia’s first millionaire footballer, Safee Sali? 

In 2012, our very own Safee Sali who was plying his trade in the Indonesian Super League, signed an extension with Jakarta club Pelita Jaya FC for two years, in a contract worth RM2 million (US$657,570), effectively becoming the first of our kind to earn 7 figures a year by footballing. Ballin’.

Safee, who was already club captain, proved himself to be a massive success there after much criticised move to our neighbouring country.

Remember when your parents would say, “Asyik-asyik bola jer, bola takkan bagi ko makan!”?

Well mum, dad, you guys eat this delicious piece of ‘humble roti canai’ (Malaysian variation on humble pie), while I go for my football practice in the evening. There better be food on the table when I get back, I’ll get you guys a Beemer each when I make it big. Xoxo

 

5. Malaysia started invading the UK!

Before the big moves we’re about to discuss, know that the Malaysian identity had already slowly been seeping into European football, through shirt sponsorships. Norwich City had “PROTON” emblazoned on their strips from 2003 to 2006:

But in the summer of 2011, Tony Fernandes bought a 66% stake in Queens Park Rangers, effectively buying ownership of the club. We now had a Malaysian in charge of an English Premier League Football club. What a time to be alive.

Tony is very passionate about the club as he spent a lot of his time in London during his younger days, there was a sense of belonging and a drive to set this project apart from just another business venture. He regularly hangs out at the pubs with the fans pre-match (normal English football ritual) and engages directly with fans and Twitter. Real stand-up guy lah, respek!

And then we have, Taiko Vincent Tan. DUN DUN DUN!

Tan Sri Vincent Tan took ownership of Cardiff City FC when he purchased 51% of the club in 2010. If it’s one thing that Tan knows, it’s business. Football? Erm… not so much, we think.

We could dedicate an entire article to his antics, but I’ll try to keep it short so you don’t fall off your chair laughing at work. Either that or you’re going to have to brave a horrible butt-clenching wave of cringe.

Tan started off by changing the club’s 104-year old colours of blue to red. The ‘Bluebirds’ were no longer blue… tapi, how la? No problem, no need for a Redbird, let’s change the bloody thing to a Dragon! Huat ahhh!

Also, when the fans try to sing and display their passion for the club heritage & history… Mock them openly. (It doesn’t help that he looks like a 2nd string Bond villain in this clip)

Next you ask the club’s board to only sign players who have the number “8” in their birthdate. Why? Ong mah!

Also publicly question why David Marshall hasn’t ever scored a goal for the club. (David Marshall is their goalkeeper. Welp.)
Here’s an extra read by USA Today: ‘America, meet Vincent Tan, possibly the worst owner in sports‘.

So yeah, you see where this is going. But it’s not all bad though, Vincent has had a change of heart and decided to reinstate the club colours & identity after his listening to his mother’s advice. The fans, rejuvenated, now sing and chant… his mother’s name at games. What a hero. Not him, his mummy.

 

6. The Rajagopal Renaissance made our boys a kicka$$ team

When this skinny Kuala Lumpur native took over as national coach in 2009, we were placed at 160 in the FIFA World Rankings. For those non-football fans, 160 = sangat teruk. Two years into his tenure, we finished at 144 in 2010. Comparatively, 144 = boleh la!

And this (until today we’ve never gone up 16 places in a year before) my friends, is not the greatest thing about the Rajagopal Renaissance. In his first year they emerged the winners in the 2009 SEA Games, bringing home the coveted gold medal. The following year they were crowned AFF Suzuki Cup Champions, but what’s most important about his time as national coach is his transformation of what was a dead and barren scene at the time.

We were quite terrible. There were constant scandals in the papers involving footballers. Senior players sat in the squads way past their tarikh lupus.

Rajagopal breathed new life into Malaysian football, and by doing so, invigorated us as a nation. He revamped the whole squad, giving focus to young players, changing our style of play into a more fluid, attacking team. Stadiums were fuller, louder, quality of club football improved, emphasis was given infrastructure & grassroots development, the list goes on. Malaysians stood up and took notice, and THAT is his crowning glory.

 

– ————- –

Football is a huge part of our culture as Malaysians, it’s what unites us, makes us cry, laugh & cheer together. Maybe it’s time to cry less already, no?

Maybe, these guys need to learn how to leave politics out of football. There isn’t supposed to be a thin line between the two, there should be a goddamn freeway running. The national team, local league & it’s club have always been found mucking around in drama, controversies & filth concerning non-footballing matters and we’ve just about had it.

There also needs to be an emphasis on grassroots development and appointing Lim Teong Kim as the new Project Director of the National Football Development Programme (NFDP), is a wonderful step forward. Maybe his “Muller” charm can rub off and that we’ll have our own award winner in Europe real soon?

Well, either way, be proud of our boys and start supporting them (if you haven’t)! You all want another public holiday or not??