Kim Pan Gon has officially resigned from the position of coach of the Malaysian national team. Here is the full statement from the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM).
Kim Pan Gon, who was burdened with the mission of improving the quality of the Malaysian national team, decided to resign. FAM said the decision was based on personal reasons.
FAM then said that they had tried their best to hold Kim Pan Gon. When Pan Gon first expressed his desire, FAM immediately tried to persuade Kim Pan Gon to cancel his desire to resign.
Here is the full statement from FAM regarding Kim Pan Gon’s resignation through Datuk Wira Mohd Yusoff Haji Mahadi:
“For all to know, Pan Gon has met with the FAM management and expressed his desire to terminate his contract duration.”
“Then there were several more meetings after that when we tried to persuade him and reconsider his wishes. In the end, the FAM Management and Executive Committee respected his decision and agreed to release Pan Gon by mutual agreement even though he still has a contract with FAM until December 2025.”
“Of course this is sad news for all of us because Pan Gon managed to bring Harimau Malaya to qualify for the Asian Cup. In addition, our FIFA ranking also increased during the 2.5 years he coached the national team. We are sad to lose him.”
Wira further confirmed that Spanish coach Pau Marti, who served as coach of Malaysia U-23, will carry out duties as interim coach of the Malaysian national team.
“What is certain is that Pau Marti’s first task as interim coach is to lead the team in the 2024 Merdeka Football Party competition which will take place at the National Stadium, Bukit Jalil in September with three other teams, namely Tajikistan, Lebanon and the Philippines.”
“At the same time, the FAM National Team Management Committee will continue to evaluate and monitor the performance of the Harimau Malaya squad under Pau Marti’s guidance from time to time, especially ahead of the 2024 AFF Cup in November and December. The 2027 Asian Cup qualification starts next March,” explained Wira.
Image source: nst.com.my
