PETALING JAYA: It is now or never in terms of Luqman Hakim Shamsudin (pic) getting regular playing minutes in football.
Since joining the Belgian club KV Kortrijk in 2020, the 21-year-old only played three matches and this year, he was loaned to Iceland’s second-division club Njardvik.
With the Scandinavian club, he played 11 games, scoring two goals, and returned to Kortrijk after his loan deal ended.
But the former Akademi Mokhtar Dahari (AMD) protege revealed that he would be on the move again as he wants to get more minutes to ensure he remains a regular in the national Under-23 setup and one day feature for the national team.
Before heading joining the national Under-23 team for a one-week training stint in China, Luqman revealed that he would be moving again but did not reveal his next location.
“I went to Iceland and got some games there. After the Under-23 Asian Cup qualifiers, I returned to Kortrijk. I am still with them but hopefully, in January, I will get a new club,” he said.
“I am looking at several avenues and for now, I have no comments on where I am playing. I am still deliberating. I’ve one more year with Kortrijk.
“So even if I move, it would be on loan.”
When asked if his next destination is to play in the Malaysian Super League, the youngster laughed and said: “Just wait and I will tell you my location soon.”
Luqman instead wants to focus on the Under-23 team as they prepare for the AFC Under-23 Asian Cup by playing two friendly matches with the China Under-23 team in Shanghai, China.
The games will be played on Dec 23 and 26.
“The preparation for this camp is really good compared to last year. We are playing against China, which is good before the AFC Cup.
“The players understand what the coach wants and he also knows which player to use well according to his system.
“We have not faced them (China) before but we expect them to be real good.”
