The FA of Malaysia (FAM) have come down hard and sacked National Under-16 chief coach Lim Teong Kim and his coaching staff with immediate effect after Malaysia failed to qualify for next year’s Under-17 World Cup Finals in Peru.
Japan dashed Malaysia’s hope with a 2-0 win in their final Group A match in the AFC Under-16 Championships at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil on Thursday.
In a statement issued by FAM secretary-general, Stuart Ramalingam said the decision to sack came from FAM president Datuk Hamidin Mohd Amin.
Stuart further added that a new head coach will be named soon after the FAM Technical & Youth Development Committee meets FAM Technical director Peter de Roo.
Teong Kim, a former international who was once the Bayern Munich assistant development coach, however, remains as the director of the National Football Development Programme (NFDP), which is under the Sports Ministry.
Meanwhile, Youth and Sports Minister Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman revealed that Teong Kim’s monthly take-home pay is a whopping RM175,000 and tax-free.
“This has got to be reviewed,” said Syed Saddiq, who added that the NFDP will be retained as it is “well-structured plan for the development of football” in the country.
Teong Kim is the director of the Mokhtar Dahari Academy and has a contract which runs through 2020.
Malaysia started off their AFC Cup Under-16 Championships with a roar – with a thumping 6-2 win over Tajikistan, followed by a 4-2 defeat to Thailand before the loss to Japan.
Malaysia also picked up two red cards in the first two matches.
Incidentally, Tajikistan joined Japan in the quarter-finals after a shock 2-1 win over Thailand. The four semi-finals in the Asian Championships earned the ticket to Peru to the Under-17 World Cup Finals.
Teong Kim, however, said Malaysia’s failure to qualify for the Under-17 World Cup Finals is “not a failure” as the long-term plans are to “produce quality players for Malaysia’s future national team.”
“Look at the long-term plans…not the short-term. These players are the future players of Malaysia and we need to develop them further,” said Teong Kim at a post-match press conference. – BY RIZAL ABDULLAH
