JOHOR BARU – The whereabouts and status of winger Arif Aiman Mohd Hanapi has become a mystery after he was not seen with the national team during their training at the Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) Training Centre, Padang Mawar in Pasir Gudang last night.
Bernama observed that only 26 players return to participate in the team’s two-hour training session, which started at about 10pm.
The training session started late to honour the month of Ramadan. It was part of Harimau Malaya’s preparation led by Kim Pan-gon ahead of their second Tier 1 international friendly against Hong Kong at the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium in Iskandar Puteri on Tuesday.
The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) have not issued any statements regarding the “mystery” of Arif Aiman’s absence in last night’s training session.
Usually, injuries with the team doctor’s confirmation are among the reasons a player can be excluded from assignments during the FIFA international matches window.
Before this, the Most Valuable Player of the National Football Awards in 2021 and 2022 was not in Pan-gon’s squad when Malaysia beat Turkmenistan 1-0 in a Tier 1 international friendly at the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium last Thursday.
On Wednesday, Pan-gon, at the pre-match press conference before the clash against Turkmenistan, confirmed that all 27 players who were called up for Harimau Malaya’s centralised training camp here were at their best fitness level and ready to be fielded.
The last time Arif Aiman donned the national team jersey was during the Thailand King’s Cup tournament in September last year, which saw Malaysia emerge as runners-up after losing in the final to Tajikistan. – Bernama, March 26, 2023
