KUALA LUMPUR – Bersatu Youth chief Wan Ahmad Fayhsal Wan Ahmad Kamal has rejected claims against his American-born brother Wan Kuzain Wan Ahmad Kamal of being unpatriotic and opportunistic.
The Machang MP’s response comes after Kuzain was recently criticised on social media for choosing to play for Malaysia only after missing an opportunity to play for the United States.
The 25-year-old Wan Kuzain, who currently plays for St Louis City 2 in Missouri, US, was also criticised by netizens for allegedly “trying too hard” to convince the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) to allow him to play for Harimau Malaya without proving his worth.
Born in Illinois, Kuzain trained with and represented the US at the under-17 level from 2013 to 2015 and gained experience with the Dutch Eredivisie club Feyenoord in 2015.
Kuzain is eligible to represent Malaysia due to his Malaysian parentage, as both his parents are Malay.
However, his commitment to the Malaysian national team has faced scrutiny in the past.
In November 2019, Kuzain was called up to train with Malaysia’s under-23 national team under Datuk Ong Kim Swee ahead of the 2019 SEA Games in Manila, but was excluded due to citizenship documentation issues.
Speaking to Scoop, Wan Fayhsal said there is no need for Kuzain to keep proving his worth, citing his brother’s experience of playing alongside Christian Pulisic, an American winger who also played for Italian giants AC Milan.
Known for his dribbling abilities, explosive speed, and finishing, Pulisic has made a total of 71 appearances for the US since 2016, scoring 30 goals.
“I don’t find it right to describe my brother as unpatriotic and opportunistic. He has the experience of playing with Pulisic at the under-16 and under-17 levels for the US, and he has been proving his worth in Major League Soccer on a regular basis.
“Just because he doesn’t live in Malaysia doesn’t mean he’s not patriotic. He has always had the desire to play for Malaysia more than the US.
“Additionally, his parents are Malays born in Malaysia and are not Americans. They just hold a green card due to the number of years they have lived in the US.
“His family is in Malaysia, which qualifies Kuzain to be Malaysian.
“One of the reasons Kuzain was reluctant to accept the call from FAM in the past was that he didn’t want his club to categorise him as a foreign player, and the club also preferred to have a homegrown player in the team.
“That was in the past, but one thing is for sure – he’s ready now and is fully committed to wearing our national team jersey if given the opportunity,” said Wan Fayhsal when met.
Wan Fayhsal also disclosed that there had been no discussions between Kuzain and local football clubs about starting his career in Malaysia.
Previously, Kuzain’s commitment to the national team was questioned by Brad Maloney, former head coach of Harimau Muda (2020-2022). It was reported that the Australian coach urged him to resolve his issues and commit to national duty, comparing him to Luqman Hakim Shamsudin, who played for Belgium-based club KV Kortrijk at the time.
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