By Aimi G.
Singapore football legend Fandi Ahmad’s love affair with the Malaysia Cup continues.
The 62-year-old, who famously scored the winner for Singapore in the 1980 final, now has a chance to lift the trophy again as the head coach of Malaysia Super League side Sri Pahang.
He was also part of the Singapore side which defeated Pahang 4-0 in the 1994 finals at the Shah Alam Stadium.
His connection to Pahang runs deep – he led the state to a Malaysia Cup and league double in 1992 and shares a long-standing friendship with Tengku Abdul Rahman Sultan Ahmad Shah.
“This is not just for me, but more for the people in Pahang. They love and appreciate it because it’s been more than 10 years since they won the 2014 Malaysia Cup, and they have missed such an occasion,” said Fandi.
Sri Pahang battled their way to the 12 April final, where they will come up against Malaysian football powerhouse Johor Darul Tazim (JDT).
“It is very difficult for other teams to win the league for at least the next 10 years because JDT are by far the strongest team with their financial power, infrastructure and players.”
“But, in a one-off cup game, I believe we have a chance. It will be very, very tough, but not impossible,” he told The Straits Times.
Sri Pahang’s journey has been anything but easy.
The team had to play their home matches at the smaller Temerloh Stadium, two hours from Kuantan, due to renovations at the Darul Makmur Stadium and also faced alleged delays in payments of salaries.
Despite finishing 11th in the league, Sri Pahang has been a different beast in the Malaysia Cup, taking down stronger sides like Selangor, Perak, and Sabah.
But the final will be their toughest test yet.
MAIN PHOTO: SRI PAHANG