Vietnamese football receives great news at the beginning of the year: Malaysia is certain to be handed a 0-3 defeat by the AFC.

According to BolaSport.com, the CAS will deliver its final ruling on the 'illegal' naturalization case in Malaysian football on February 26th. By then, FAM will not be able to escape sanctions, including the national team being handed a defeat by the AFC.

FAM has indirectly pleaded guilty to fraud in the Malaysian citizenship case.

AFC (Asian Football Confederation) Secretary General Windsor Paul John confirmed that FAM only appealed to CAS to request a reduction in the players' sentences. FAM did not request the lifting of all sanctions or the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) overturning FIFA's suspensions against the seven players. This suggests that FAM indirectly admitted to fraud in the naturalization process, according to BolaSport.com .

FAM has indirectly admitted to fraud, only requesting a reduced sentence for the players at CAS; it's only a matter of time before the AFC declares Malaysia the loser of both matches. The Vietnamese national team (in red) will qualify for the 2027 Asian Cup.

Photo: Ngoc Linh

"This is quite interesting, because local Malaysian media reports consistently suggest they will win the case. This is based on a prediction by Windsor Paul John, who believes FAM has a 50% chance of winning thanks to CAS recently suspending the suspension of seven naturalized players."

But then, Windsor Paul John himself immediately dashed all hopes by revealing the truth about FAM's appeal at CAS. It turned out that FAM's request was merely to reduce the penalty, indirectly confirming that Malaysian football had committed fraud," BolaSport.com added.

Excitedly awaiting February 26th.

BolaSport.com also stated: "FAM will certainly be sanctioned, and it's only a matter of time, after CAS holds a live hearing on February 26th. With the nature of the case becoming increasingly clear, it's highly likely that CAS will issue a ruling soon without needing to deliberate for as long as predicted."

Besides the FIFA sanctions, which may be upheld, the AFC will also take further steps to forfeit matches involving the Malaysian national team that used ineligible players in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers (including two matches against Nepal and Vietnam, both of which will be forfeited with the same 0-3 score). The sanctions could even be increased, pushing Malaysian football into an even more dire situation.

On Berita Harian's website on February 17th, the Chairman of the Malaysian Paralympic Council (MPM), Megat D Shahriman Zaharudin, also warned that FAM needs to be realistic about its opportunities at CAS.

Mr. Megat, having experience with a successful case at CAS, acknowledged that the process at this court is not to be taken lightly. Without solid grounds and arguments, FAM's defeat is inevitable.

FIFA has proven with concrete evidence that none of the players who were illegally naturalized as Malaysian citizens have Malaysian ancestry.

Photo: Ngoc Linh

"If the FIFA disciplinary body in Lausanne has ruled that we committed fraud, and then we want to take the case to the CAS, do we think that the people on the disciplinary committee are inexperienced? That's what I don't understand."

"They are reputable individuals, lawyers from all over the world , some of whom have handled cases at CAS and are international lawyers. Their reputation is under threat. Of course, every matter will be considered very carefully before a decision is made," Megat said.

Megat also explained how the CAS panel might examine players' backgrounds in detail if necessary: ​​"If at CAS they call each player and ask, 'Were you born in Malaysia? Was your mother born in Johor?' and the answer is no, then what more can we explain? How can we relate that to ancestral lineage from ancient times just to strengthen an argument?"

Therefore, according to Megat, if FAM appeals to CAS solely for a reduced sentence, there may be hope, but it cannot change anything from the verdict announced by the FIFA Disciplinary Committee.

In a related development, Malaysia's Minister for Youth and Sports, Mohammed Taufiq, also stated that the 18 million ringgit (approximately 119.8 billion VND) allocated by the government to FAM and the National Football Development Programme (NFDP) will be suspended until FAM completes its case at CAS and receives a final ruling.

Thanhnien.vn

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/bong-da-viet-nam-nhan-tin-vui-lon-dau-nam-malaysia-chac-chan-bi-afc-xu-thua-0-3-1852602170901318.htm