Lim Teong Kim is back – this time as Perak FC coach.
The announcement was made this evening, as the club’s chairman, Datuk Seri Abdul Azim Zabidi, said it was “time to restructure the team following the continuous streak of defeats in the last three Premier League games”.
Having only managed five wins in 17 games, the Kinta Valley team is placed last in the league.
Lim, who arrived in Kuala Lumpur from Germany yesterday, played for Malaysia in the 1980s. As coach, he once served as Bayern Munich’s Under-19 team coach.
He hogged the spotlight, yet again, during his tenure as the National Football Development Programme (NFDP) director in 2013, and as Mokhtar Dahari Academy (AMD) director, three years later.
Lim was offered a two-year contract in a bid to rebuild Perak FC. The former Kuala Lumpur footballer often speaks about the need to uphold professionalism and his love for challenges.
In 2019, he told Twentytwo13 that the way forward was to ensure that footballers were put on the right track upon graduating from AMD.
“We need to create a pathway for them to play with Under-19 teams. Let’s be realistic, not all of them are ready for the senior team, while not all coaches are willing to play younger players. They want results, especially those who are pressured to get results … A lot has been invested in these players and somebody needs to take responsibility for them and I’m doing just that,” he was quoted as saying then.
As such, would Lim now be given the opportunity to hire former AMD footballers to play for Perak FC?
While Perak FC’s management and sponsors may speak about developing and rebuilding the team, they would need some return on investment and would not want to be a part of a losing team. Would Lim, then, be pressured to spend on big names for instant results?
Two years is a short time to rebuild a team that has been badly battered and bruised, on and off the field.
All eyes will also be on Lim’s relationship with the other stakeholders in the league. He has had brushes with Football Coaches Association of Malaysia president B. Satianathan and Johor Darul Ta’zim owner Tunku Ismail Ibrahim in the past. The off-pitch drama will most likely continue.
It will not be a walk in the park for Lim.
However, he can always console himself by heading to Batu Kurau – just an hour and half’s drive north of Ipoh – to enjoy his favourite fruit, the durian.