PETALING JAYA, Dec 9 – Count on the locals and show what Malaysian footballers have from skills and football talent that is on par with the foreigners who have been making a beeline to Malaysia to play in the highly competitive M-League.
Super League outfit, Petaling Jaya City FC has taken the lead and hopes to face the challenge – a brave and bold step towards changing the landscape of Malaysian football when this southeast Asian nation was a top name not only in this region but also in Asia.
To kickstart the new season the club management has set a within reach top-six finish in the elite league under former international, P. Maniam (pic) who is the new head coach – taking over the hot-seat vacated by K. Devan after his contract ended last month.
Club owner Datuk Seri Vijay Eswaran said it will be a challenging season without the foreign players but reiterated that the locals will be up there proving their worth which will be a big boost for the national team in time to come.
”When the foreigners are around the local players spend more time on the bench. Now these locals will have more playing time and this is the time for them to showcase their football talent and skills,” said Vijay.
Maniam, who was assistant to Devan last season, added that ”keen battle for a place in the team” is on the cards and this will keep the players on their toes.
”It will do the team good in the long run and it will also benefit the club in the long run,” added Maniam.
Last season PJ City finished in seventh place in the league that was curtailed by the Covid-19 pandemic and reduced to a single round. The Malaysia Cup and the FA Cup were canceled.
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