KUALA LUMPUR – As the 2023 Super League season recently kicked off, many are already predicting that giants Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) will be crowned champions again for the 10th consecutive time.
Yesterday, the Southern Tigers hammered Negri Sembilan FC 7-0 at the Paroi stadium, and the results were evident as to why JDT would be unstoppable this season.
But are they competing on an even playing field, and is their dominance healthy for Malaysian football?
Speaking to The Vibes, football legend Datuk Santokh Singh said that the Super League has been lopsided towards JDT for the last 10 years now.
He said that the club is not playing on an even playing field because of the spending power of the Southern club, which has left the rest of the pack behind.
How can you have one team that has so much money while others can’t even meet their expenses or pay salaries?
“JDT have all the money and perks, leaving other teams unable to do anything to catch up,” he said when contacted.
Having dominated the Super League for almost a decade, Santokh said the imbalance within the league will not benefit Malaysian football.
“In my opinion, it is not good for the league, and it is not good for Malaysian football.
“To be frank, I think the FA of Malaysia (FAM) is not doing enough to improve the standards of football in the country,” he added.
What will happen to local players?
Santokh said during his playing career in Selangor FC during the 70s and 80s, The Red Giants were dominating the league at a time when there were no foreign players in local clubs.
“During my time in Selangor, we dominated the league without foreigners. JDT is dominating because of their foreign players. Why aren’t they playing their local players?
“What will happen to our local footballers? They don’t have the opportunity to come up in a team filled with foreign players.
“Clubs like JDT are basically just thinking about excelling in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), that is why they are bringing in foreign players,” said the 70-year-old.
‘Money talks’
However, Malaysian football great Datuk James Wong has a different opinion as he said that football is no longer what it used to be before the 2000s.
“We are no longer talking about amateur status when it comes to Malaysian football. It is now professional status.
“And whether you like it or not, money talks. If you have the money, then you can afford to buy the best players,” he said.
As a former Sabah FC player, James said many supporters are not particularly pleased with the current squad.
They are unhappy not because Sabah are doing poorly, but because the team is dominated by non-Sabahans.
“I think it is the same situation as JDT. If you look at clubs in England, they barely have homegrown players, unless they are smaller clubs that don’t have the spending power akin to that of the giants.
“If you want to up your game, then there is nothing else to do but to find the funds and get the best players available. That is the reality of football,” he said.
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James added that the arrival of imported players in the league has also changed the national football team’s image.
“The identity of the national team is now totally different compared to my playing days, but I accept the reality.
But if this is what is needed to raise the standards of Malaysian football, then who knows? Perhaps it is good, or maybe it is not.
“Times change, and we have to change ourselves accordingly with the times.
“The only thing I hope is that Malaysian football does not forget the contribution of the former players and what we had done during our time as players.” – The Vibes, March 8, 2023
