KUALA LUMPUR – Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi is the latest to jump on the bandwagon in mocking Youth and Sports Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Faizal Azumu after the latter reportedly blamed local football fans for a goal conceded by the national team against Bahrain.
Zahid, who is a former deputy prime minister, urged fans to ignore what he described as a nonsensical theory invented by Faizal, and to continue backing the squad ahead of its crunch final qualification match for the 2023 AFC Asian Cup against Bangladesh tonight.
Malaysia needs at least a draw to qualify.
In a Facebook post today, the Umno president maintained that the country’s defeat to Bahrain on Saturday has nothing to do with the supporters.
If anything, Zahid said, the voices of Malaysia’s “twelfth player” only ignited the spirit of the Harimau Malaya team.
This is after Faizal, who is popularly known as Peja, suggested that the loud cheers from more than 63,000 supporters inside the Bukit Jalil National Stadium on Saturday had caused the national players to lose momentary focus.
“This is not the first time our players are performing in front of supporters,” Zahid said. “There has never been an instance where our player played in a stadium behind closed doors without fans, except for training.
“Luckily, he (Faizal) is not the coach or player. Otherwise, he would have even blamed the sound of people eating kuaci (roasted plant seeds) for disturbing his concentration,” Zahid quipped.
Yesterday, Utusan Malaysia reported Faizal as saying that while Malaysia’s performance in the Bahrain defeat was a spirited one, supporters also contributed to the players losing their focus.
“After we scored our first goal, there were several players, including Guilherme De Paula (Malaysian striker), who were lining up outside the pitch waiting to enter,” Faizal said.
“At the time, the whole stadium was cheering. And immediately after the cheer, the players lost focus, resulting in a goal.
“So, to say the reason we lost is entirely because of the players, I don’t think that’s right. As someone is in the stadium, supporters can also contribute to players losing their focus.
“If I was on the pitch, I would have certainly been asking why the fans are shouting at me, and I would have lost focus too.”
After receiving brickbats, Faizal has since tendered his apology on Twitter, clarifying that the cheers and support from the twelfth player are crucial and very much appreciated.
Sorakan dan sokongan para penyokong sebagai pemain ke-12 amat penting dan amat dihargai. (Bila dah kena balon, saya pun pening). Cakap2 bola saya sebelum ini telah disalah erti. Ampun dan maaf atas kesilapan saya.
— Faizal Azumu (@PejaOfPerak) June 13, 2022
“My previous footballing comment has been misunderstood. I apologise for my mistake,” he tweeted. – The Vibes, June 14, 2022
.jpeg)
