KUALA LUMPUR – The process of naturalisation has become increasingly common in modern footballing nations, with the aim of enhancing their performance and establishing themselves as competitive teams on the international stage.
Malaysia is no exception, as the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) has actively naturalised various foreign players over the past five years to integrate them into the Harimau Malaya team.
A highly-placed source in the football fraternity has revealed that FAM has made wiser decisions regarding the naturalisation of players, learning from past mistakes.
“FAM has a new naturalisation committee, and now they are selecting the right players for naturalisation compared to the past.
“Previously, many of the players selected were brought in only for the AFC Asian Cup and World Cup qualifiers between 2018 to 2022, and most of them failed to make a significant impact, such as Guilherme de Paula and Liridon Krasniqi.
“FAM has become wiser now, opting to save operational costs by allowing local football clubs to manage the naturalisation process.
“The football body’s role is primarily to incorporate these players into the senior team,” the source said.
Meanwhile, questions are also being raised within the industry about the longevity of these naturalised players, as many of them have yet to be seen playing for Harimau Malaya again.
“Since FIFA doesn’t impose a quota on the number of players FAM can naturalise in a year, FAM has been spending a lot on naturalising players, especially those who claim to have Malaysian roots, such as Natxo Insa, Kiko Insa, and Lee Tuck.
“Most of them have yet to play for Malaysia again. For example, players like Lee Tuck no longer represent Malaysia, as he has abandoned our country and returned to England to run his own business,” the source added.
Gambia-born Mohamadou Sumareh became Malaysia’s first-ever naturalised player, contributing to Harimau Malaya’s second-place finish in the 2018 AFF Cup.
FAM currently has four naturalised players (Paulo Josué, Nooa Laine, Endrick dos Santos, and Ezequiel Agüero) in Pan-gon’s squad, which recently finished as runners-up in the Pestabola Merdeka tournament. – October 28, 2023