PETALING JAYA – The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) will take additional security measures to ensure the safety of national footballers during centralised training and while representing the country.
FAM president Datuk Hamidin Mohd Amin said the additional security measures would involve the safety of players when attending centralised training, during match day and when they were overseas on official duty.
The measures taken are to ensure player safety remains at the optimum level, especially after the recent attacks on Malaysia internationals Akhyar Rashid and Faisal Halim.
“We have notified the police officer responsible for security during national team assignments to be alert of players’ movements. (It) does not matter whether here or overseas, safety and security of the players must be the priority.
“The same security and safety procedures will have to be adhered to during centralised training camps. We do have a police officer who looks after the safety and security of the players in the team. Maybe we need to (increase the number of police guards),” he said at Wisma FAM, here today.
Hamidin urged everyone to remain calm and not speculate by linking the two attacks to bookies or syndicates involved in football betting.
“I am not certain if the attacks were planned or otherwise. The matter is beyond my knowledge. I am concerned with what has happened,” said the FAM chief.
Meanwhile, Hamidin did not rule out the possibility that Faisal would miss Malaysia’s two remaining group matches in qualifying for the 2026 World Cup and 2027 Asian Cup against Kyrgyzstan and Taiwan next month.
“Based on my visit and info received yesterday, he (Faisal) may require at least two to three months to recover fully,” he said.
Yesterday, the local football fraternity was shocked by news that Selangor FC’s Faisal was a victim of an acid attack at a shopping mall in the Klang Valley. The forward is believed to have suffered burns on the neck, shoulder, hands and chest.
It was the second incident involving a national player after Akhyar was attacked and robbed by two assailants on Thursday.
The 25-year-old suffered injuries to his head that needed stitches after he was hit with a blunt object by his assailants, who managed to escape.
Faisal and Akhyar have been instrumental in the Harimau Malaya’s build up to the qualifiers scheduled at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil next month. – May 6, 2024