* Kim Swee’s contract with the FAM ends at the end the year
* ‘FAM will have to let me know of my future by the end of this month’ – Kim Swee
* ‘Coaching a national side is the dream of every coach’ – Kim Swee
ONG KIM SWEE’s future with the FA of Malaysia (FAM) lies with the national football body as his existing contract ends on Dec 31 2015.
This simply means that the FAM will have to get back to Kim Swee by the end of this month as stipulated that negotiations must take place three months before the expiry of an existing contract.
But for now the former international has accepted a massive challenge after being named the interim national football coach when Dollah Salleh quit the job following the disaster at the Mohammed Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi last Thursday – a 10-0 mauling by United Arab Emirates (UAE) in a Group A (Asian Zone) World Cup qualifying match.
In a hurriedly convened FAM Exco meeting on Friday following Dollah’s resignation Kim Swee was the only name that came up to be the caretaker coach because Malaysia face Saudi Arabia at the Shah Alam Stadium on Tuesday.
Another defeat stares at Malaysia and many said Kim Swee is “crazy” to be in the hot seat more so when confidence is at an all-time low following the bashing in Abu Dhabi.
But the Malacca-born Kim Swee has accepted the challenge. He believes a “decent performance” will stand in good stead following “non-stop criticism” from all levels after the disaster in Abu Dhabi.
“There was no way I could say ‘NO’ when I was approached. Time is against everyone because the next match is on Tuesday. FAM are my paymasters is one thing but the challenge is another.
“I must admit that I cannot perform miracles within days but if the players can go out and give their best and put up a decent performance at Shah Alam it will be an achievement in many ways,” said Kim Swee after a briefing with the team on Sunday afternoon.
This is not the first time Kim Swee is handling the national team as an interim coach. He is best remembered for guiding Malaysia to the SEA Games football gold medal in Indonesia in 2011.
Kim Swee has recalled JDT’s Fadhli Shas (defender), Kelantan’s Ahmad Fakri Saarani (Kelantan) and Ramadhan Abdul Hamid (goalkeeper) and utility man Adam Nor Azlin, both from Harimau Muda B for the match against Saudi Arabia.
Released from the squad that went to Abu Dhabi are Perak goalkeeper Zamir Selamat (ACL), Terengganu defender Zubir Azmi (hip injury) and Kelantan striker Norfarhan Mohammad who has family commitments.
Coming back to his contract with the FAM, Kim Swee did not hide the fact that he has received several offers from clubs and other teams. He refused to go into details but the National Under-23 coach said:
“There are no two ways about it…FAM have to come back to me on the matter as it is about my livelihood. But everything is on hold for now. There are still three more weeks to go before the three-month grace for negotiations begin.”
But for now it is Saudi Arabia and anything about the contract takes a back seat.
The 10-0 defeat in Abu Dhabi was the worst suffered by Malaysia in an international football match – which left Malaysians shell shocked. Malaysian football fans are still reeling from the disaster and what is in store for them this Tuesday is left to be seen.
Only time will tell.
So let us join forces and give Kim Swee and the national team our blessings. They need that badly.
