KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 26 — The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) are hoping for a special standard operating procedure (SOP) for the national team who will be preparing for the second round of the 2022 World Cup/2023 Asian Cup Qualifiers scheduled to begin next March.
The national football governing body, who asked that the SOP for the 14-day quarantine be reviewed, made the request through the Youth and Sports Ministry for it to be forwarded to the National Security Council (MKN) ahead of Malaysia’s Group G matches against the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Vietnam and Thailand.
FAM president Datuk Hamidin Mohd Amin, in a statement yesterday, said the request was made because the national team would have only five days between their away game against the UAE in Dubai on March 25 and home match against Vietnam on March 30.
Malaysia is in the second spot in Group G of the qualifiers with nine points after playing five out of the eight matches. However, UAE who are in fourth place with six points, have one extra match while Group G leaders, Vietnam have 11 points, followed by Thailand in third place (eight points) and Indonesia last without any points.
Earlier, a meeting between Youth and Sports Minister Datuk Seri Reezal Merican Naina Merican and the top leadership of FAM as well as the Malaysian Football League (MFL) was held at the MFL headquarters yesterday to discuss MFL’s plans for 2021.
Among the issues discussed were the effect of sponsorship on the Malaysia League (M-League) during the Covid-19 pandemic period as well as the return of fans to stadiums in stages if there was a drop in Covid-19 cases in the future.
— Bernama
