It’s not entirely inconceivable that hyperbolic discounting continues to dominate the Malaysian football narrative. It’s volatile, there’s barely any certainty and it’s difficult see beyond short-term rewards, especially when there’s no guarantee to your position within the club.
Selangor though, are in a unique position to make the shift in the next few months – though rumours suggests that the vicious cycle of knee-jerk decisions is set to continue. Despite winning the Malaysia Cup last night, Mehmet Durakovic remains in a precarious position with regards to his head coach role and Zainal Abidin’s name lingers in the background.
A squad revamp takes place for most Malaysian teams every year, but given the context of Selangor’s achievements under Durakovic over the last few years, is it the smartest thing to do? Probably not. A simple analysis of Selangor’s last two season will tell you that they’ve done reasonably well under the tutelage of Durakovic.
In 2014, Selangor finished 2nd on the league, made it to the quarters of the Malaysia Cup – there were also tangible disappointments in the form of their early exits from the FA Cup as well as the AFC Cup. This year, they finished second in the league again, and are now Malaysia Cup champions for the 33rd time in their history.
Fair enough, their second place finish was a result of Pahang being docked points, but statistics show a certain degree of improvement. They scored 43 goals, compared to the 28 goals scored in 2014 and they finished behind two sides with the biggest budgets within the local football scene.
With the exception of Andik Vermansyah and Robert Cornthwaite, none of Selangor’s foreign players are individually outstanding. Leandro dos Santos was subjected to massive criticisms earlier this year, but yet he went on to play a key part in their Malaysia Cup journey. Similarly, Guilherme de Paula was supposedly unfit to spearhead Selangor’s offensive department, but his work ethic allowed the likes of Hazwan Bakri and Afiq Azmi to thrive upfront.
He backed them all the way as well. It’s difficult for foreigners to hit top form, when they’re consistently hit with barrage of skepticism – though Durakovic’s constant public declaration of support, allowed Guilherme and Leandro to remain focused on the end-goal. They transformed themselves into effective team players and it was due in no small part to the ex-Melbourne Victory boss.
Defensively, the squad has been revitalized as well. He has transformed Shahrom Kalam into one of the most formidable defenders in the country – which explains why they only conceded 19 goals in the league back in 2014. Despite a myriad of injury issues this season, Selangor somewhat retained their defensive solidity – they possess the third best defensive record in the MSL, behind JDT and Felda United.
His pedigree was equally important in them being able to secure the signature of Rob Cornthwaite – who has been one of their most consistent performers throughout 2015. “Obviously when you live overseas, it’s always nice to have an Australian-minded coach who shows a real interest to bring you to the club. Since joining Selangor, I’ve seen first hand how he manages his players and how all the players respect him. It’s a close group,” he told us during an exclusive interview, back in January.
Note that within a short space of time, Rob was able to point out that Durakovic’s biggest strength was his ability to unite the group of players under his disposal. The Malaysian football calendar can be absolutely brutal. The schedules are usually unforgiving. Squad morale can easily be diluted under these circumstances, so it takes a real motivator to rally the squad throughout the year, consistently as well.
In fact, it was probably the reason why Selangor triumphed last night as well. Earlier this year, ex-Malaysian international Lim Chan Yew proclaimed that Selangor aren’t favourites for the Malaysia Cup and his premised his claim upon the idea that they don’t have enough quality within the team. To be fair, it was a reasonable statement – even if you disagree with his premise, Selangor don’t have the individual brilliance that’s available to some of the other favourites. Look at the semi-final for instance – Kedah, Felda United and Pahang all possessed foreign players capable of turning on the style at any given moment. For the Red Giants, it was always about a collective effort.
This collective unity is usually fostered over time and it takes an incredible amount of meticulous attention as well. More importantly, it needs passion. Last night, Durakovic became the first foreign player to have won the Malaysia Cup as a player as well as a head coach. When the final whistle was blown, you could almost see the ecstasy in his eye. Like it or not, this is his club. To him, it’s not a job. It’s a responsibility – one that he takes very seriously.
This needs to be prioritized over everything else. As good as Bojan Hodak was as a head coach, Johor DT moved swiftly to sack him, when he fell out with several individuals within the dressing room – most notably, Jorge Diaz. Mario Gomez restored that unity over time, and JDT went on to clinch the AFC Cup title, besides winning the Malaysia Super League. It’s the exact reason why Sarawak retained the services of Robert Alberts in 2013, despite suffering relegation into the Premier League. That same year, they dominated the MPL in style and remained unbeaten in the league for the entire season.
Selangor are in a crucial position. They’ll be competing in the AFC Cup next year, but they will also be going up against teams who are using 2015 as a springboard to reach for bigger heights. JDT are on track to expand their ever-growing empire, Felda United will be debuting their new stadium, Terengganu have reinvigorated their squad with big name signings while Kedah and Penang will undoubtedly be building on their success this year.
But of course, the reality on the ground suggests that none of these elements are influencing individuals in the background to push for the sack. As always, it’s a game of politics. And for some off reason, Mehmet’s inability to play the game – despite his more relevant and important attributes – seems to be dominating the narrative. But if preserving political capital is premised upon retaining support from the masses, then sacking Durakovic could prove to be a fatal mistake for key individuals within the management of Selangor FA.
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