U23 Malaysia unexpectedly accused of age fraud in Southeast Asian U23 tournament

(Dan Tri) - Many Indonesian newspapers have accused U23 Malaysia of age fraud in the U23 Southeast Asian tournament.

After being embroiled in a scandal involving naturalization fraud, Malaysian football has been accused by the Indonesian press of age fraud in the U23 Southeast Asian tournament. Accordingly, player Ahmad Aysar Hadi is said to be older than his 21 years of age.

Indonesian press said Ahmad Aysar Hadi is much older than his 21 years (Screenshot).

RRI newspaper commented: “The name Ahmad Aysar Hadi is the focus of attention of Indonesian netizens after the U23 Indonesia clashed with U23 Malaysia on the evening of July 21. Looking at this player's appearance, no one would think he is only 21 years old.

With a thick mustache and an old face, Ahmad Aysar Hadi has been questioned by the public about his age. It is worth noting that this is not the first time this player has been questioned. At the 2022 Southeast Asian U19 tournament, Vietnamese fans also raised questions about Ahmad Aysar Hadi's age.

According to statistics site Transfermarkt, Ahmad Aysar Hadi was born on September 4, 2003. That means that as of now, he is only 21 years old.

Before that, Ahmad Aysar Hadi was quite prominent at the youth level of Malaysia. He was the captain of the U19 Malaysia team that won the U19 Southeast Asian Championship held in Indonesia. In addition, this midfielder was also honored as the Best Player of that tournament. After that, Ahmad Aysar Hadi continued to represent the U20 and U23 Malaysia teams.

U23 Malaysia was criticized for their disappointing performance at the U23 Southeast Asian tournament (Photo: AFF).

Detik also asked: “How can we believe that Ahmad Aysar Hadi is only 21 years old? This player looks much older than others his age. Many people think he is a veteran player, not a young face.”

Radar Cirebon newspaper emphasized: “This is not the first time Ahmad Aysar Hadi has been involved in age fraud suspicions. Even the Malaysian football community had doubts about his real age when he played for the Negeri Sembilan youth football academy.

The incident caused a stir in Malaysia in 2022. Many believed that Aysar had falsified documents to qualify for youth tournaments in Malaysia as well as in Southeast Asia. Aysar is considered a mysterious player in Malaysian football because of the lack of information and the difficulty in tracing his real age.

In response to this situation, Malaysia’s Harian Metro newspaper stressed: “The Selangor-born player is fully legally eligible to play. On the pitch, Aysar has proven that maturity and maturity on the pitch are more important than appearance. He has silenced Indonesian fans.”

Malaysia U23 just had a disappointing tournament when they were eliminated in the group stage. They won 4 points after 3 matches, winning against Brunei, drawing with Indonesia and losing to the Philippines. After that, the press of this country admitted that the development of youth football in Malaysia is on the verge of collapse.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-thao/u23-malaysia-bat-ngo-bi-to-cao-gian-lan-tuoi-o-giai-u23-dong-nam-a-20250723190533596.htm