Saw this article from Kingdom of football and it tell me why ASEAN football will always be at the bottom not just in world football but Asian one as well.
Firstly though, I am not going to say ASEAN football is shit just because of cases like Cambodia football now in the Suzuki Cup Qualifiers or even the one like Myanmar in July during the AFC Under-22 championship Qualifiers.
The truth is we are in this predicament because we pay lip service to youth development and glory is more important to the policymakers who lead the game throughout the entire ASEAN region.
Afterall in Singapore, is it not the same as just looked at our 'Under-23' teams as claimed by our FAS and Singapore Press Holding (SPH) media.
Yes, I am talking about both the Courts Young Lions and LionXII who our policymakers and their media backers SPH continue to claim are, in general, youth development teams.
Indeed, SPH Sport editor Marc Lim had wrote last week that the LionXII is an Under-23 team but who is he kidding as he may fool the layman supporters but let honestly looked at the make-up of the team that take to the field regularly.
Most of the time no more than 4 players - Hariss Harun, Safuwan Baharudin, Khariul Nizam and Izwan Mahbud - are in that bracket and I can even say it is as low as 3 as Nizam is not a regular, for he cannot compete against the senior players, and with no disrespect even if it was just between him and Agu Casmir, he will still lose out as he is not a complete footballer yet.
If this evidence is not enough then the June transfer window where the LionXII had to send back 4 Under-23 players to Courts Young Lions because they were getting no match experience at all state what is wrong in calling this team a youth development for our youngest and brightest are just left to rot on the bench while those taking to the field are in their mid-20s to late 20s. (SPH is playing with average age of whole squad to cover this up)
The Olympic teams during Olympic Games are called Under-23 because they only allowed 3 overage players but in Singapore it is totally in reverse where no more than 3 Under-23 players take to the field as starters most of the time so what development.
But do not think I am just hitting the LionXII because it is the pet project of current FAS president for I am now coming to the Courts Young Lions who are in the S-league.
Despite playing more Under-23 players in their games, I am not sure if I want to call it a model youth development team at all for let be honest, they are not developing the players we need now in attack as these slots are taken up by Benjamin Lee, El Masri and Toto.
Is it any wonder looking at the future one wonder who is going to take up the slack in attack for if the Cubs, the team that suppose to play our lads, does not even play attackers who can represent Singapore, who are FAS to ask the clubs to do that.
No point illustrate this better than the transfer of Iqbal Hussain from Cubs to Gombak United.
At this point, it is impossible to tell if Iqbal Hussain will ever reach his full potential and step up to play at the international level but even if injuries had hamper his time at the Jalan Besar team, the question is why was he not given the chance after he recover from that, for at Gombak he has been given that.
Indeed I have highlighted this many times wondering why a team that is suppose to develop players and yet do not play potential players at all instead going for established players for these are what Camara (a defender), Benjamin Lee, El Masri and Toto are.
So is it any surprise we continue to see problems in key areas all over for the national team.
That why one wonder what youth development teams we have for they are playing players who are not Under-23 or even eligible to represent the Republic yet FAS and SPH can call both LionXII and Courts Young Lions youth development.
Who then are the real culprits and I direct this Raddy on the statement he make weeks ago as well as SPH who has never questioned the so called Under-23 teams when in fact there are none.
But do not despair readers for Singapore is in a region as terrible as us in term of youth development and that is why ASEAN football will always be bottom with Singapore part of it problem as well.
We just do not care about youth development here in Singapore or ASEAN as claimed for if we did then we will pay more attention to it than what we are giving it
Firstly though, I am not going to say ASEAN football is shit just because of cases like Cambodia football now in the Suzuki Cup Qualifiers or even the one like Myanmar in July during the AFC Under-22 championship Qualifiers.
The truth is we are in this predicament because we pay lip service to youth development and glory is more important to the policymakers who lead the game throughout the entire ASEAN region.
Afterall in Singapore, is it not the same as just looked at our 'Under-23' teams as claimed by our FAS and Singapore Press Holding (SPH) media.
Yes, I am talking about both the Courts Young Lions and LionXII who our policymakers and their media backers SPH continue to claim are, in general, youth development teams.
Indeed, SPH Sport editor Marc Lim had wrote last week that the LionXII is an Under-23 team but who is he kidding as he may fool the layman supporters but let honestly looked at the make-up of the team that take to the field regularly.
Most of the time no more than 4 players - Hariss Harun, Safuwan Baharudin, Khariul Nizam and Izwan Mahbud - are in that bracket and I can even say it is as low as 3 as Nizam is not a regular, for he cannot compete against the senior players, and with no disrespect even if it was just between him and Agu Casmir, he will still lose out as he is not a complete footballer yet.
If this evidence is not enough then the June transfer window where the LionXII had to send back 4 Under-23 players to Courts Young Lions because they were getting no match experience at all state what is wrong in calling this team a youth development for our youngest and brightest are just left to rot on the bench while those taking to the field are in their mid-20s to late 20s. (SPH is playing with average age of whole squad to cover this up)
The Olympic teams during Olympic Games are called Under-23 because they only allowed 3 overage players but in Singapore it is totally in reverse where no more than 3 Under-23 players take to the field as starters most of the time so what development.
But do not think I am just hitting the LionXII because it is the pet project of current FAS president for I am now coming to the Courts Young Lions who are in the S-league.
Despite playing more Under-23 players in their games, I am not sure if I want to call it a model youth development team at all for let be honest, they are not developing the players we need now in attack as these slots are taken up by Benjamin Lee, El Masri and Toto.
Is it any wonder looking at the future one wonder who is going to take up the slack in attack for if the Cubs, the team that suppose to play our lads, does not even play attackers who can represent Singapore, who are FAS to ask the clubs to do that.
No point illustrate this better than the transfer of Iqbal Hussain from Cubs to Gombak United.
At this point, it is impossible to tell if Iqbal Hussain will ever reach his full potential and step up to play at the international level but even if injuries had hamper his time at the Jalan Besar team, the question is why was he not given the chance after he recover from that, for at Gombak he has been given that.
Indeed I have highlighted this many times wondering why a team that is suppose to develop players and yet do not play potential players at all instead going for established players for these are what Camara (a defender), Benjamin Lee, El Masri and Toto are.
So is it any surprise we continue to see problems in key areas all over for the national team.
That why one wonder what youth development teams we have for they are playing players who are not Under-23 or even eligible to represent the Republic yet FAS and SPH can call both LionXII and Courts Young Lions youth development.
Who then are the real culprits and I direct this Raddy on the statement he make weeks ago as well as SPH who has never questioned the so called Under-23 teams when in fact there are none.
But do not despair readers for Singapore is in a region as terrible as us in term of youth development and that is why ASEAN football will always be bottom with Singapore part of it problem as well.
We just do not care about youth development here in Singapore or ASEAN as claimed for if we did then we will pay more attention to it than what we are giving it
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