KUALA LUMPUR: Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh (pix) has clarified that it was the match commissioner (MC) appointed by world football governing body FIFA who decided not to allow Malaysia and Oman to conduct official training at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil ahead of their 2026 World Cup/2027 Asian Cup Qualifiers.
Hannah said in a post on X (formerly known as Twitter) that the decision was made after taking into consideration that it often rained in the evening and night of late.
“The National Stadium in Bukit Jalil (SNBJ) has received the MC’s approval for the game tomorrow.
“Harimau Malaya supporters are encouraged to converge on the SNBJ to give their full support,” she wrote.
It was reported today that Harimau Malaya and Oman did not get the green light to train at the National Stadium because of the poor state of the pitch.
Harimau Malaya head coach Kim Pan Gon is counting on the pitch at the National Stadium to be in tip-top condition for the Group D match tomorrow.
Pan Gon said that he had not seen the National Stadium’s pitch condition recently but was promised by those involved that the pitch would be ready for tomorrow’s match.
According to the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM), the national team instead trained at Wisma FAM while Oman trained at the Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) Stadium.
After three matches in Group D, only goal difference separates the top three teams, with Oman in top spot, Kyrgyzstan second and Malaysia third, despite all three having six points each. Taiwan are at the bottom of the standings without any points.
Malaysia’s next match will be away against Kyrgyzstan in Bishkek on June 6 before completing their group fixtures at home against Taiwan in Bukit Jalil on June 11.-Bernama