Story by Victor Seow and Danny
Ooi
Pix by Ahmad Adil Muhamad
DESCRIBED by Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng as a “magical goal”, Mohd Faiz Subri’s free-kick goal against Pahang in the Super League at the City
Stadium on Feb 16 earned the recognition of the state government when he was awarded RM10,000 for his sensational feat.
Helped by Faiz’s wonder strike, the Panthers beat Pahang 4-1.
In a simple ceremony on Feb 18 that was attended by several state exco members and the who’s who in the Penang football scene, a visibly jubilant
Lim described Faiz’s achievement in glowing terms and one which captured global attention as evident from reports in several foreign newspapers.
“To describe Faiz’s goal as extraordinary is a misnomer. I’d prefer to call it a magical goal, one which has now captured the attention of many
international press like the Mirror and The Independent in UK, the Sydney Morning Herald and the Bleacher Report,” said Lim.
“As reported by the international media, Faiz could also find himself nominated for this year’s Puskas award for the aesthetically best goal scored
by a player. For the first time, a Malaysian football player made it to such levels
and it definitely makes me proud for Penang to have produced such an illustrious son,” he added.
Also present at the event were Deputy Chief Minister I Datuk Mohd Rashid Hasnon, state exco members Dr. Afif Bahardin (Agriculture & Agro-Based
Industry, Rural Development and Health) and Datuk Abdul Malik Abul Kassim (Religious Affairs, Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs), Ipoh
Barat MP M. Kulasegaran, state secretary Datuk Seri Farizan Darus, Football Association of Penang (FAP) president Datuk Seri Nazir Ariff and state
coach Jacksen Tiago.
It was also revealed to the press that the allocation received by the FAP since 2014 had increased significantly and the achievements attained by the
association are testimony of money well spent.
After Faiz’s achievement, Britain’s The Independent newspaper reported that the goal should be nominated for Fifa’s Puskas Award.
The Puskas Award, named after Ferenc Puskas, captain of the Magical Magyars of the 1950s and a Real Madrid striker later, was established in
2009 by Fifa to recognise players who score the beautiful goals of the year.
The goal that defied physics had garnered over 200,000 views on YouTube by evening of the same day.
The swerving free-kick which had Pahang goalkeeper Nasril Nourdin rooted has been compared with the goal Brazilian full-back Roberto Carlos
scored at the 1997 Tournoi de France.
“I meant to take it in the manner that I like, but did not expect the ball to end up in the back of the net.
“I have been practising the free-kick in training.
“This is the first time I tried it in a match because most of my free kicks are aimed directly at goal,” Faiz told a press conference on Feb 17.
Also present were FAP president, Datuk Seri Nazir Ariff, its treasurer Datuk M. Murly and state football team coach Jackson Tiago.
He added that when he woke up on the morning on Feb 17, he was shocked by the number of messages on his hand phone.
“I cannot believe the video of the goal has gone viral,” he said.
Meanwhile, FAP intend to auction the full set of attire worn by Faiz when he scored his wonder goal.
“The full set of attire worn by Faiz will be put up for auction on the FAP website, hopefully by next week (end of
February),” said Murly, adding the starting price for the auction is RM100,000.
World attention on Faiz wonder goal
Faiz explaining how he scored his wonder strike.
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