Malaysia’s Muhammad Akhyar Abdul Rashid (right) fight for the ball with Sri Langka’s Kavindu Ishan (left) during the Tier 1 International Match 2019 at Bukit Jalil National Stadium in Kuala Lumpur on Saturday. OCTOBER 5, 2019. MUHAMAD SHAHRIL ROSLI/The Star.
The Guardian newspaper in Britain have picked up the news articles on the recent spate of attacks against national footballers in Malaysia (https://www.theguardian.com/football/article/2024/may/08/footballers-in-malaysia-attacked-advised-to-hire-bodyguards) highlighting the recommendation by the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) that players consider hiring bodyguards.
Top flight club Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) were also asked to beef up security for their squad after their midfielder Safiq Rahim became the third player to be attacked over the past week.
Safiq, a former national team captain, had his car windscreen smashed by unknown assailants late on Tuesday.
Selangor winger Faisal Halim is in critical care unit after he was splashed with acid at a shopping mall on Sunday and Akhyar Rashid was injured in a robbery outside his home in Terengganu last week.
JDT will be hosting the Charity Shield match against Selangor on Friday.
