Malaysia to naturalize 7 players to play Vietnam at Asian Cup qualifiers

Naturalized defender LaVere Corbin-Ong (number 22) goes for the ball during the match between Malaysia and Vietnam in the second qualifying round of the 2022 World Cup in June 2021. Photo by VnExpress/Hieu Luong

Malaysia's biggest club Johor Darul Ta'zim (JDT) president Tunku Ismail confirmed the information but did not disclose the players' identities.

"We have identified six to seven players with Malaysian descent for the national team," Tunku wrote on X on Jan. 11. "Hopefully, the government will support in issuing passports so the players can compete starting in March."

Malaysia will begin their group F campaign with an away match against Nepal on March 25. Vietnam and Laos are the other teams in the group, with Vietnam viewed as Malaysia's main opponent. The two teams are set to face off on June 10 in Malaysia, with the return leg scheduled for March 31, 2026.

Tunku, a powerful figure in Malaysian football, previously served as president of the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) from 2017 to 2018. In December 2024, he emphasized Malaysia's ambition to qualify for a second consecutive Asian Cup, seeing the tournament as a turning point for the team.

He also highlighted the importance of naturalized players in Malaysia's campaign and proposed adding players such as Brazilian striker Bergson da Silva and Argentine forward Manuel Hidalgo. Bergson, 33, has an impressive record of 126 goals in 120 matches for JDT since joining in March 2021. Hidalgo, 25, has been playing in Malaysia since 2021 and currently represents Sri Pahang.

Johor Darul Ta'zim president Tunku Ismail (2nd, L) poses with Football Association of Malaysia CEO Rob Friend (L) and former Australian legend Tim Cahill (3rd, L). Photo by X/HRH Crown Prince of Johor

Tunku, 40, is the regent and heir to the throne of Johor state. Under his leadership, JDT has dominated Malaysian football, winning the league title for 10 consecutive years from 2014 to 2023.

However, JDT chose not to release its players for the 2024 ASEAN Cup, citing its scheduling outside of FIFA days. Malaysia were eliminated in the group stage of that tournament for the second consecutive time. For the Asian Cup qualifiers, however, Malaysia will have their strongest squad, while Vietnam are expected to miss naturalized striker Nguyen Xuan Son due to injury until at least June.

Malaysia have already used several naturalized players, including Brazilian midfielders Endrick and Paulo Josue, Scottish forward Fergus Tierney and Argentine midfielder Ezequiel Aguero. However, players like Colombian striker Romel Morales and Gambian forward Mohamadou Sumareh were absent from the 2024 ASEAN Cup.

In addition to naturalizing players, Malaysia has restructured the team with new leadership. Peter Cklamovski, a 46-year-old Australian, has taken over as head coach. Cklamovski was previously an assistant coach for the Australian national team under Ange Postecoglou, now managing Tottenham Hotspur and led FC Tokyo in Japan's J1 League for two seasons (2023–2024).

FAM also appointed former Canadian international Rob Friend as CEO. Friend, 42, played for clubs such as Borussia Mönchengladbach, Hertha Berlin, Eintracht Frankfurt, and LA Galaxy during his career and earned 32 caps for Canada. After retiring in 2014, Friend co-founded the Canadian Football League and helped grow its value to $300 million in six years. He also served as CEO of Pacific FC (2019–2022) and chairman of Vancouver FC (2022–2024).