KUALA LUMPUR – Kedah Darul Aman FC’s head coach Mohd Nafuzi Zain has denied rumours of his team engaging in an international friendly against Santos Futebol Clube (Santos FC) at the Darul Aman Stadium on February 17.
It was reported that the Brazil-based club, competing in the local second-tier league (Campeonato Brasileiro Série B), would travel to Alor Setar after participating in a preseason tournament in Qatar alongside Russian club Zenit Saint Petersburg FC, China’s Shanghai Shenhua FC, and host team Al Duhail FC, from February 1 to 13.
Speaking to Scoop, Nafuzi said the agreement for the friendly match was made last season.
However, due to the current financial issues plaguing the club, his team has not been able to commence any pre-season training thus far.
“My team and I were not informed by the club management about this friendly match, and the rumours are not true as we won’t be playing Santos FC. The Malaysia Super League ended a few months ago, and our players are yet to start their training for the new season.
“We have been facing a lot of financial issues in our club, and the management is working hard to resolve these ongoing problems. That’s their primary focus for now.
“We can only think about our preseason matches and training once the financial and player salary issues are resolved. For now, we don’t have any plans for playing any preseason or friendly matches.
“I don’t think Santos FC knows about our ongoing issues, and that could be the reason why they posted on their social media platforms that they will be playing us. I believe the agreement for the friendly was made last season, but we never know. Once the financial issues are over, we might play them in a friendly in the future,” said Nafuzi.
Previously, it was reported that Kedah FC’s majority shareholder, Tan Sri Mohd Daud Bakar, confirmed that the club is facing financial woes, resulting in players, coaches, and team officials not being paid their salaries since August last year.
The management board also announced yesterday that Khamal Idris Ali resigned as the club’s chief executive after four years of service.
In an effort to raise funds, the club organised a fan engagement tour series around the state in November last year in partnership with the Green Yellow Supporter Club, involving the sale of merchandise.
Meanwhile, Nafuzi also expressed his hope for ‘the canaries’ to challenge for their spot in the AFC Cup after narrowly missing out on the competition last season.
“We were very close last season to securing our spot in the AFC Cup. We started off the season well and were in the top two and three of the league until the final five games of the season.
“The players were all demotivated after the salary issue incident, and that cost us our spot in the tournament. I have already informed our players that, no matter what happens, we should not let our ship sink this season, and we should stay focused on reaching our goal.
“I just hope that this financial issue can be resolved so that my players will get an extra boost to compete and give their 100% for the team,” Nafuzi added.
Despite facing financial challenges, Kedah FC continued to perform well on the field, finishing fourth with 53 points in the recently concluded 2023 Super League season.
The club boasts a prestigious history, having clinched the Super League title three times (1993, 2006, and 2007) and winning the FA Cup five times (1990, 1993, 2007, 2008, and 2016). – February 2, 2024