KUALA LUMPUR – The appalling conditions of the Bukit Jalil National Stadium field during Malaysia’s 2023 Asian Cup Qualifiers match against Bahrain has been a talking point over the past few days.
The Harimau Malaya were defeated by current Group E leaders Bahrain 2-1 in their second match, but what caught everyone’s eye was the horrendous state of the field during the match, which resembled a minefield instead of a national football pitch.
However, Bahrain head coach Helio Sousa said although the conditions were bad, more could be done by the organisers of the match, particularly the Asian Football Confederation (AFC).
“AFC needs to do more. Football has changed, and they need to adapt and make changes.
“They should have at least prepared two stadiums, not just one. It is difficult to play six international matches on the same pitch,” he said at the post-match press conference on Saturday.
The Portuguese also said AFC should help host countries more when it comes to organising international football competitions.
He said their training facility did not even have proper changing rooms for the players.
“Our team couldn’t have their cooldown process after a training session. We had to wait until we got back to the hotel to do that.
“It's not a cooldown therapy if it is held 20 to 30 minutes after training. This is tough for the team but unfortunately, we have to adapt to these conditions,” he added.
On Saturday, the pitch had been soaked since 7pm as heavy downpours kept falling for two hours. Despite that, a source said that the organisers had ignored Malaysia Stadium Corp’s (PSM) advice to postpone the kick-off time by 30 minutes to allow the water to drain away.
At some points during the match, the ball was not able to be passed properly as it was stopped by the puddles of mud that were caused by the inappropriate use of dustpans and cardboards to push the stagnant water off the field.
PSM chief executive Mohd Faidz Sanusi said, “Stadium Corp and the youth and sports ministry will start the refurbishment of the field in the first quarter of next year as well as fix other issues in the stadium that are needed.”
Previously, it was announced that Crown Prince of Johor Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim will be gifting the national stadium with the same Zeon Zoysia grass pitch used at the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium in Johor. – The Vibes, June 13, 2022.
