7 pemain warisan layak beraksi mulai hari ini

Kuala Lumpur: Seven players who were suspended by FIFA 12 months ago for using fake documents to support their eligibility to represent Malaysia in international matches are now allowed to participate again starting today. This change was announced by the Malaysia Football League (MFL) through a press release dated October 30, confirming the suspension period for the involved players has expired.

MFL Executive Director Mohd Shazli Shaik Mohd confirmed the contents of the press release, which was also shared on social media. "Yes, true," he said when contacted by Bernama.

The seven players involved are Facundo Garces, Rodrigo Holgado, Imanol Machuca, Joao Figueiredo, Gabriel Palmero, Jon Irazabal, and Hector Hevel. Out of these seven, four - Figueiredo, Palmero, Irazabal, and Hevel - have already played for Johor Darul Ta’zim and DPMM FC, as confirmed by their respective clubs. The controversy surrounding these seven players surfaced in September last year after FIFA found that falsified documents were used to support their eligibility to represent Malaysia in international matches.

In May last year, the International Sports Appeal Court (CAS) partially granted appeals from the seven players challenging the FIFA suspension due to the falsified naturalization paperwork and eligibility issues. The CAS's decision in its summary ruling, issued without detailed reasons, maintained the seven players' suspension for 12 months for official matches only, not for all football-related activities.