PETALING JAYA: After the 0-0 draw in the FA Cup semi-final on June 25 against Kuala Lumpur, Terengganu needed Ghanaian striker Jordan Mintah (pic) badly in the penalty shootout.
He declined to step up. For that, he has been kicked down to the Terengganu II team and will play no more part in the Super League first team.
Kuala Lumpur won the shootout 4-2, but Mintah’s agent believes his player has been unfairly punished.
“Is not taking a spot kick considered a disciplinary offence? The player clearly told one of his assistants, who asked if he could take the kick or not, that he could not take it due to knee pain,” said agent Wan Anwari Wan Amran.
“The head coach did not even come to the player to ask about the penalty. If a player has a disciplinary problem, he should be issued a letter with a reason.
“The coach needs to explain to the player instead of giving a statement to the media that could tarnish the reputation of my client,” said Wan Anwari.
Terengganu coach Tomislav Steinbruckner had issued a statement saying he cannot work with players who do not believe in him, in this case, Mintah.
He then banished the player to the second team. Anwari questioned if the reason was strong enough for disciplinary action.
“The Terengganu fans will have a bad impression of Jordan. His future will be affected because of this false statement. As an agent, I would not defend a player if he committed the mistake as claimed by the coach. I hope this issue is not prolonged for the good of the team and also Malaysian football,” he said.
The Ghanaian is currently Terengganu’s top scorer with five goals in 10 Super League matches. The other strikers in the team are Croatian Ivan Mamut and Thai international Adisak Kraisorn.
The Turtles will again take on Kuala Lumpur in the Super League at the Cheras Football Stadium today.
Terengganu are sixth in the league with 23 points from 15 matches.
