CAS Decision A Shot In The Arm For Harimau Malaya Heritage Players

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 27 (Bernama) -- The decision by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) to allow the seven suspended Harimau Malaya heritage players to resume playing while awaiting a final decision on their appeal has given them new hope.

The decision to grant the application for a stay of execution submitted by Facundo Garcés, Rodrigo Holgado, Imanol Machuca, João Figueiredo, Gabriel Palmero, Jon Irazabal dan Héctor Hevel means the players can all heave a huge sigh of relief as they can now take part in any professional football-related activities for the time being.

 Holgado, in an Instagram post, described it as a positive outcome for him after a difficult period.

"When you least expect it, the sun shines again and everything is rosy again; no storm remains forever,” he posted.

Palmero, meanwhile, posted a brief response, simply saying "we are back”.

Meanwhile, Garces, who had been suspended from playing for his La Liga club Deportivo, confirmed in an official statement that he can resume training with his teammates.

A survey also found that the CAS decision has received mixed reactions among local football fans.

A majority of them expressed relief and supported the CAS decision, describing it as crucial to ensuring the national team's positive momentum ahead of their Asia Cup qualifier against Vietnam in March.

On Sept 26 last year, FIFA confirmed that FAM and the seven players had violated Article 22 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code (FDC) related to document falsification.

Investigations revealed that FAM had submitted documents believed to have been falsified to confirm the eligibility of the players, allowing them to compete in the third-round match of the 2027 Asian Cup Qualifiers on June 10, which saw Malaysia defeat Vietnam 4-0 in Group F.

Consequently, FAM was ordered to pay a fine of CHF350,000 (about RM1.8 million), while each player was fined CHF2,000 (about RM11,000) and suspended from all football-related activities for 12 months.

Hopes for the penalty to be reduced were dashed when the FIFA Appeal Committee rejected the appeals filed by FAM and the players on Nov 3, thereby upholding the Disciplinary Committee’s decision on the violation of Article 22 of the FDC.

As such, FAM had no choice but to bring the case to CAS to ensure justice is served and to defend the integrity of the player eligibility process set by the government and the relevant authorities.

-- BERNAMA