The Football Association of Malaysia has suspended the Secretary General, Datuk Noor Azman Rahman, after FIFA imposed penalties.
According to New Straits Times (NST), the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) has officially suspended Secretary General Datuk Noor Azman Rahman to allow an independent committee to handle the recent FIFA sanctions against the association and seven naturalized players.
"This suspension results from FIFA's sanctions on FAM due to incomplete documentation of seven naturalized players of the 'Harimau Malaya' (the Malaysian national team). Consequently, Malaysia's results in the qualifiers World Cup have recently been annulled," NST reported.
The Football Association of Malaysia stated that it has filed an appeal to FIFA and is conducting an internal investigation to identify the cause of the administrative error. Previously, Datuk Noor Azman Rahman himself admitted the mistake in submitting the naturalization documents for the seven players mentioned.
"We identified a technical error in the submission process carried out by administrative staff. FAM regards this as a serious issue. However, we emphasize that all involved naturalized players are legitimate Malaysian citizens," he shared.
Currently, Malaysia is anxiously awaiting the final decision regarding the results of the matches in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers. According to the latest information, the Football Association of Nepal has also filed a complaint with FIFA, requesting Malaysia be forfeited in the match held last March.