ASEAN young talent to face Cong Phuong in Belgium League

Malaysian press reports that the 18-year-old Luqman Hakim Shamsuddin reached the agreement to join Kortrjik- a club playing in the Jupiler League along with Cong Phuong’s Sint-Truidense.

Luqman, the youngest player to join a top  league in Europe, will undergo a short training in Cardiff City before signing his official contract with the club in January 2020.

“I think he (Luqman) could make it. His heart is in the right place. He needs to  work hard and keep focused. Everything is on him right now,” Kortrjik president Vincent Tan said at a press conference in Kuala Lumpur this morning.

Vincent Tan is the owner of both Cardiff FC and KV Kortrjik as well as another club in Bosnia.

Luqman looked nervous but said he would do his best not to waste this opportunity, as playing football in Europe has always been his dream.

“I have to prepare myself mentally and physically to be there. Of course I will do my best. It is my dream, and I will seize the opportunity,” said Luqman.

Although football is the number one sport in Malaysia, the national team only ranks 158 out of 211 International Football Federation (Fifa) countries.

Many  Malaysian players have played in Europe before but they have never been at the top division of the  league.

In 1987, former coach Lim Teong Kim played for a season with Hertha Berlin SC in the third division of the German Bundesliga.

In 2001, Striker Rudie Ramli and Midfielder Fazli Shaari signed a one-year contract with another third division German squad, SV Wehen but left after five months.

Titus James Palani was the Malaysian-born player that played in Europe for the longest time. He is a graduate of the prestigious Le Harve football academy, who currently plays with the third division French squad, CS Meaux.

Luqman’s club  will not face Cong Phuong’s in Jipuler Pro League on Oct 10, but the two players will clash later on during the second leg of the league.