MALAYSIA’S SEASON-OPENING CHARITY SHIELD CANCELLED AFTER TOP CLUB WITHDRAWS OVER ASSAULTS, ACID ATTACKS ON PLAYERS

Faisal Halim suffered fourth-degree burns following incident at the weekend outside the capital, Kuala Lumpur
Teammate Akhyar Rashid also injured in robbery outside his home in eastern state of Terengganu last week

Malaysia's season-opening Charity Shield match has been cancelled after Selangor FC withdrew over safety concerns following a series of attacks on players over the past week, the Malaysian Football League (MFL) said on Thursday.

The club's opponents, Johor Darul Ta'zim (JDT), have been awarded a 3-0 win.

Selangor and Malaysia winger Faisal Halim is in intensive care with fourth-degree burns after being splashed with acid at the weekend outside the capital, Kuala Lumpur.

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His Malaysia teammate Akhyar Rashid was injured in a robbery outside his home in the eastern state of Terengganu last week.

And in the latest incident on Tuesday, JDT's former Malaysia skipper Safiq Rahim escaped unharmed after he was threatened with a hammer and his car windscreen was smashed by two assailants on his way home from a training session.

Selangor, one of Malaysia's top clubs, had called for Friday's match against JDT to be postponed but the MFL said the game would go ahead after receiving a security guarantee from police.

In a statement posted on X on Wednesday, Selangor said they had opted to not participate in the match, citing "a series of criminal incidents and recent threats".

"After much deliberation and detailed discussion with various parties ... the club has reluctantly decided to not participate," Selangor, the 2023 Super League runners-up, said in the statement. "The safety of the team is of utmost importance and we take all forms of violence and threats seriously".

Malaysia Super League champions JDT - one of Asia's top clubs - said they were disappointed by Selangor's decision.

"Johor Darul Ta'zim (JDT) will be given a 'walkover' victory with a score of 3-0 and get three points for the Super League match," the MFL said in a statement.

The Malaysian Charity Shield is a super cup competition, but it is also the first match of the league season, with points awarded.

Stuart Ramalingam, chief executive officer of the MFL, said the remaining five Super League fixtures scheduled for Saturday and Sunday would go ahead.

"All other matches will go on," he said. "There are no other clubs that have asked for postponement or indicated they don't want to play."

Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) president Hamidin Mohamad Amin has urged high-profile footballers to take safety precautions, including hiring bodyguards.

Authorities have yet to establish any motives for the attacks, the first since the formation of the country's professional league 30 years ago.

"It has never happened in the history of Malaysian football," Hamidin Mohamad Amin, president of the FAM, told AFP.

Faisal is in critical condition in hospital and will reportedly need multiple surgeries after he was splashed with acid at a shopping centre on Sunday.

Nicknamed "Mickey", the 26-year-old plays on the right wing for both club and country.

The third victim, 36-year-old Safiq, plays for JDT, who are run by the crown prince of the powerful Johor royal family. Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar is the king of Malaysia under the country's rotating monarchy.

Mohamad Shuhaily Mohamad Zain, the police criminal investigation department director, said they had yet to determine a motive or if the attacks were connected.

But he said all the attacks had involved two people who had followed the players and vowed the police would do whatever it took to apprehend the perpetrators.

"Two suspects were arrested in relation to the attack on Faisal," he said. One had been freed with the other still being questioned."