World Cup 2014 - Fantasy Or Reality?

The other night I was watching Scoreboard Extended on TV3. The topic was “Piala Dunia 2014- Fantasi atau Realiti?”. I am not sure if a lot of people know but it seems like FAM has targetted World Cup 2014 as the year where a Malaysian team will be part of the 32 elite teams. Meaning that Malaysia will be pitting their skills and game against the mighty Brazil, Argentina, England, Germany, France or other football power house. But like the topic that was discussed…is it a fantasy or a reality?



Can we in maybe 6 years time (deduct two years for qualifying round) prepare a team capable of reaching the final 32 teams? Less than a month ago we lost to Vietnam in the semi-final of the Sea Games. To qualify, we have to be among the top 5 nation in Asia which include Japan, South Korea, Arab Saudi, Iran, Bahrain, Qatar and Kuwait and with Australia joining the Asian Football Federation. We are not even the best in our South East Asia region and we are talking of reaching the World Cup in 2014.



Unless in that six years time we found a Rooney, a Ronaldinho, a Ronaldo or a Cech somewhere in our proud Malaysia, I don’t see this becoming a reality. Don’t accuse me of not believing in the “Malaysia Boleh” slogan but we do have to make sure what we dream of are at par with our ability and mentality. Right now, with the current state of our football, I don’t see any reason why we should be dreaming of reaching the 2014 World Cup or even the Asia Cup.



I do want to see Malaysia in the World Cup one day, don’t get me wrong. Even countries like Togo, Ivory Coast, Ghana and even Trinidad & Tobago are gonna be playing in the World Cup this summer 2006 with their sudden emergence as a football nation. Malaysia will hopefully one day qualify but the road leading to the World Cup is long and bumpy. It has been a long period since Malaysia has given us anything to shout about. We are still basking in the memories of Allahyarham Mokhtar Dahari, Ghani Minhat, Soh Chin Aun and many more football legends in our country during the 70’s and early 80’s but what can we be proud of now? We have not won any major competition for over a decade with the gold medal in the SEA Games 1989 serving as the last proud moment in Malaysian football history. We have endured more humiliation with losing to minnow football countries like the Philippines and Myanmar in the SEA Games and also trashed by a Hong Kong team.



It is not just FAM responsibilities to guide Malaysia there but we as Malaysian should come together and also be part of that journey. FAM can plan and strategize to get a Malaysian team into the World Cup but without us helping, none of those plans and strategies will be effective as proven so far. I don’t think I am in a position to criticize FAM or any of the state FA but I think they should be more focus on the future of football rather than what we have now.



We should concentrate on the young generation of our country. We should make sure that the next generations of Malaysia’s footballer have a strong basic football skills and knowledge. These basic skills should not be taught to them when they are 14 or 15 years old but we should start from a tender age of maybe 6 or 7 years old when it is easier for them to absorb this information. If we teach them when they are teenagers, they have already created their own habit of playing and it is hard for them to accommodate skills that are basic. Some players are born with talents but if we do not help to sharpen their skills, the talent would just be a talent. From age group competition, coaches should identify players and the selected players should be put in a football academy to be set up in each state. Right now, the only sport school I know, correct me if I am wrong, is Bukit Jalil Sports School. In my opinion, we need more sports school or in this case football academies so we have a much wider pool of players to select from.



We do have age group competition and also Piala Presiden but we do have to understand that the players will only meet maybe a month before the competition and train together. After the competition, all of the players will go back to their respective school and will be coach by teachers who might not have any qualification to teach football. It would be better if we can keep group them into an academy where qualified coaches will coach them in all aspect of football. At the same time, this academy will also help to instill discipline so they can be a better professional. At the same time, the academy can make sure the boys are eating healthy to build their physical strength and body built.



Setting up the academies will definitely need a lot of money, but if MPPJ are willing to invest RM15 million into their M-League team, why can we persuade other major companies around the country to be major sponsors. At the moment, the focus of state FAs and also clubs in Malaysia are in the wrong direction. Instead of joining forces to develop Malaysian football, their major focuses are winning the league and the Malaysia Cup, which to me are short term success. Instead of parading new young players, these teams are proud to announce the recruitment of players from Indonesia, Ghana, South Africa or European countries who are not even good enough to make the grade in their own league. Maybe the foreign players to develop the young players in the team but so far, what have we achieve with foreign players in our league? The quality of football in our country has not improved and I dare say, is even lower than before.



Parents should also play an active part to help in the development of football for the future. In Malaysia especially, a career in sports in general is not a very popular choice for parents who would rather see their children to grow up as doctors, lawyers, engineers and accountants. With the introduction of football academies where the focus would not only be preparing their children to be professional footballers but also making sure their children education are on top of the list too. With this in mind, even if they do not succeed in making football as their career, they can also pursue their academic excellence. Being a professional footballer should not stop anyone to be a scholar too as proven by world class players and coaches around the world.



To achieve a dream of reaching the World Cup, all parties should be working together. Each one of us Malaysian should also contribute, directly or indirectly towards achieving that dream. We have to be patient to see the fruit of the investment. We should set a realistic target for our long term program. We should first be the best in South East Asia by winning the Sea Games gold and the Tiger Cup, and then to qualify and also win the Asia Cup. We need to establish our self and also maintain that performance before we can dream of qualifying and playing in the World Cup. And like I said, the key to this success is everybody needs to work together as a team without political or self interest which now ruining our football quality now. We need to be patient and also allow time to be on our side.



Maybe one day, we will see Malaysia in the World Cup. For the time being, the side of Malaysia winning the gold medal in the Sea Games or the Asian Games would be enough for us football fans.