Evan and Ilham want to stay behind and help Selangor, says team manager

Zulhilmi Zainal

Evan and Ilham want to stay behind and help Selangor, says team manager image


BY        ZULHILMI ZAINAL       Follow on Twitter


Selangor manager and vice president Datuk Abdul Rauf Ahmad intends to retain the services of Indonesian duo Evan Dimas Darmono and Ilham Udin Armaiyn, although they have been called up to Indonesia's squad for the PSSI Anniversary Cup.

The young players have been called up by Indonesia head coach Luis Milla for the four-team invitational tournament and the training camp, which will takeplace from April 23 to May 3 in Bogor, Indonesia. But the tournament is held outside of the FIFA international fixture window, and Selangor have two Super League matches within that period; at home against Negeri Sembilan (April 28) and away to league leaders JDT (May 1). The Red Giants too now sit precariously one spot above the relegation zone; in tenth place.

"We have told the PSSI (Indonesian FA) president that it is not the time for us to release the two. We have asked PSSI to reconsider their decision, after all our earlier agreement to let them go was for their friendly against Iceland, and the Asian Games.

"Furthermore Evan and Ilham too have no problems, as they want to stay behind to help us, although that doesn't mean that they don't want to help their national team. We need them, as the two league games are very important," said Rauf when met by Goal after their second leg quarter-final match against Kuala Lumpur on Saturday.

When asked whether they will propose an alternative to ensure that at the very least the club do not lose both players for both of their league matches, Rauf responded in the affirmative.

"We're trying to work on that as well; maybe we'll secure their availability for the JDT clash.

"We hope PSSI will consider this, especially when we're facing player suspensions and injuries at the moment," he remarked.

Zulhilmi Zainal