KUALA LUMPUR – Fans of the domestic Malaysia League (M-League) are rubbing their hands with glee now that the 2023 season is set to kick off with the Charity Shield clash between Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) and Terengganu FC (TFC) at the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium in Iskandar Puteri, Johor tomorrow.
This season’s curtain-raiser promises to be exciting as the winner will not only take home the Sultan Ahmad Shah Cup but also all three points in the Super League.
JDT, who have won the Super League title nine times in a row, last year’s Super League runners-up TFC, and 12 other teams will slog it out over the next few months for the chance to be crowned champions of the top tier of local football.
Besides the Southern Tigers and the Turtles, the other 12 clubs are Selangor, Kedah Darul Aman (KDA), Sabah, Kuala Lumpur (KL) City, Sri Pahang, Negeri Sembilan, Perak, Penang, Kelantan, PDRM, Kuching City, and Kelantan United.
So, can JDT make it a perfect 10 by defending the Super League title?
Can Argentine coach Esteban Solari’s JDT, who have been further strengthened by the signing of national goalkeeper Ahmad Syihan Hazmi Mohamed, Endrick Dos Santos, Diogo Luís Santo – who featured for JDT in the 2019-2020 season – Juan Muniz, and Oscar Arribas, dominate the domestic league yet again?
These are the two questions that are on everyone’s lips. As favourites, the Southern Tigers will have to deal with the expected pressure, knowing that several teams will be looking to rain on their parade.
One of them will surely be TFC. Led by a new manager – Tomislav Steinbruckner of Croatia – TFC have enjoyed quite a good preseason, defeating Thai sides Bangkok FC and Chonburi FC, drawing with Rajpracha FC, and losing to Denmark’s Odense Boldklub FC.
Boasting some big names in attack, such as prolific Thai striker Adisak Kraisorn and naturalised player Liridon Krasniqi, there is no doubt that TFC intend to reach a higher level than during the era of former coach Mohd Nafuzi Zain.
Let us not rule out Sabah, either. The Rhinos, who have shown encouraging progress under the guidance of former national team head coach Datuk Ong Kim Swee, have also caught the eye in preseason, scoring three big wins against Singapore’s Geylang International FC, Melaka, and Tampines Rovers (Singapore) in friendlies in Kota Kinabalu.
Looks like Kim Swee is ready to add the Super League crown to the 2009 Premier League title he won with Harimau Muda.
Despite enduring a lacklustre preseason, one should not write off the likes of Selangor, KL City, and KDA as they could very well finish in the top three of the Super League come the end of the season.
Keep a lookout too for some surprises from teams like Perak, Sri Pahang, Negeri Sembilan, Penang, Kelantan, PDRM, Kuching City, and Kelantan United.
Another factor that may make this year’s Super League a more thrilling affair is that it provides a platform for new players to be unearthed and roped into the Harimau Malaya squad for the 2023 AFC Asian Cup Finals that will be held in Qatar next January.
Six trophies will be up for grabs in the 2023 M-League. They are the Charity Shield, Super League, FA Cup, Malaysia Cup, Malaysian Football League (MFL) Challenge Cup, and MFL Cup (for the Reserve League).
Under the restructuring of the M-League this year, football fans will be treated to the MFL Cup for the first time while the MFL Challenge Cup is making a comeback after it was last held in 2018.
The most notable change is that the Super League will now stretch from tomorrow until December 17, with a total of 182 matches on the cards – 50 more than last season – following the inclusion of two more clubs to make 14 this season.
Another important change made by the MFL will see the Malaysia Cup being held during the Super League period and, as such, the prestigious tournament will no longer mark the climax of the M-League season.
Based on the promotion that has been carried out and the involvement of two well-known television stations, local football observers and analysts expect the comprehensive match coverage to take the excitement level of the M-League up another notch. – Bernama, February 23, 2023
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