# FIFA hit Malaysia hard with a hefty fine plus sanctions
# Fifa award Saudi Arabia a 3-0 win in the abandoned match
# Malaysia to play next World Cup qualifier at home behind closed doors
# Ultras Malaya get their way to shame Malaysian football
The 40,000 Swiss franc (RM180,000) fine slapped by Fifa on Malaysia for crowd trouble in the World Cup qualifier against Saudi Arabia at Shah Alam Stadium on Sept 8 has plunged Malaysian football to an all time low.
Malaysia are rightly punished but the damage done by the Ultras Malaya backed by someone with authority left Malaysia’s image tarnished worldwide.
Putting the fine aside Malaysia will now have to play their next qualifying match at home – which is against United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Nov 17 behind closed doors.
On top of that Saudi Arabia were awarded a 3-0 win over Malaysia for the Sept 8 match at Shah Alam.
There were only two minutes of regulation time remain on the clock but Hong Kong referee Liu Kwok Mun was forced to abandon the Asian Zone Group A World Cup qualifier section of the fans threw smoke bombs, flares and firecrackers on 88 minutes.
With Malaysia’s plunging to an all-time low 171 in the latest Fifa ranking list which has affected the team’s morale for their friendly match against Laos in Bangkok on Thursday before they face Timor Leste in a World Cup qualifying round match in Dili on Oct 13.
For interim coach Datuk Ong Kim Swee it is a bitter pill to swallow when he had done enough in a short period of only three days to whip the players into shape and re-ignite their confidence after the 10-0 thrashing at the hands of UAE Sept 4.
Malaysia even took the lead against the mighty Saudis with a goal by skipper Safiq Rahim on 71 minutes before the Saudis scored two through Taiseer Al-Jassan and Mohammad Al-Sahiawi in the next six minutes for a 2-1 before the match was abandoned.
To comeback from a humiliating defeat within a spate of five days was itself an achievement for Kim Swee and the team known as Harimau Malaya. But all that went to waste.
The Malacca-born Kim Swee did some wonders with his motivation as the players rose to the occasion with committed and disciplined performance against the highly touted Saudis.
Now it is left to be seen if Malaysia can put another fighting display for the friendly against Laos and the World Cup qualifying round match against Timor Leste. Timor Leste are no more the whipping boys of football.
They held Malaysia to a 1-1 draw in the Singapore SEA Games and repeated the score in the first round Group A qualifier at Shah Alam.
