ALTHOUGH born as a Moroccan, Merzagua Abderrazzak, who featured for Penang FA as a professional player in the 90s, is now back in the state as the new Penang Football Club technical director.
Merzagua was no ordinary foreign player because his deftness and goalscoring ability led the club to two top-division championships in 1998 and 2001, and second-place finishes in 1999 and 2000.
This marks Merzagua’s third return to Penang, following his stint as Penang head coach in 2012.
In a media conference last night, Merzagua expressed his delight at being appointed as Penang FC’s technical director and has vowed to create an identity for the club in the new 2024/2025 season.
“To become successful, we need to create an identity that the entire club must represent, including the management, coaching staff, and most importantly the players.
“I will do my best to deliver results, and with the support of the management and relevant parties, I am very certain we can perform better than now,” Merzagua told a media conference at the Penang Harmony Centre in George Town on Jan 16.
Merzagua also said the two times he was in Penang as a player and head coach in the past came at critical points and said he was happy to be instrumental in lifting the team from the bottom to a decent position.
At the media conference, Akmal Rizal was named as Penang FC’s head coach for the Super League, while Manzoor Azwira will lead Penang FC’s Under-23 team.
When asked about recruits for the squad, including local and imported players, Akmal said the management is currently in the planning stages and an announcement will be made soon.
In the same vein, Manzoor said he is determined to train the young players to support the senior players when the time is right.
In a related development, Merzagua was asked to comment about technical decisions he would make for Penang FC following Jordan’s thumping 4-0 victory over Malaysia in their opening Group E match at the Asian Cup at the Al-Janoub Stadium in Doha, Qatar on Monday (Jan 15).
He was thrown this question as Jordan’s head coach, Hussein Ammouta, is a Moroccan too, and who also has played against Merzagua in the past.
To this, Merzagua said Hussein was a former player with great pace, and that he is applying the same technique to his players now.
“Today’s game is all about speed. When I say speed, it is not only about how fast you run, but how fast you decide before passing or tackling.
“From front to back, this is an essential skill that can drive a team to success, and we hope to do the same with Penang FC too,” he added.
Also present during the media conference were state Youth, Sports and Health Committee chairman Daniel Gooi Zi Sen and Penang FC general manager Jeffrey Chew Gim Eam.
Story by Kevin Vimal
Pix by Alissala Thian