Former Malaysian captain Safiq Rahim became the third football player to be attacked in a week after two attackers broke his car’s window and threatened him with a hammer.
He had just finished practicing with Johor Darul Ta’zim, one of Asia’s best football teams and the home of the crown prince of the Johor royal family when he was attacked late in Johor. Fortunately, he was not hurt.
In a post, the athlete declared: “Didn’t expect to be attacked near the Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) training centre. We need to be vigilant.”
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“Two men on a motorcycle suddenly approached my car armed with a hammer and smashed my rear car windscreen… I stopped the car and I was in fear,” he added.
Rahim and other attacks
Two more assaults on football players in the country of South-east Asia occurred within the same week. Faisal Halim, a right-winger from Malaysia, was doused with acid outside Kuala Lumpur’s capital, leaving him in the intensive care unit of a hospital with fourth-degree burns. Moreover, a robbery outside his home in the eastern state of Terengganu injured his teammate Akhyar Rashid.
According to Azli Mohamad Noor, the chief of police in Kuala Terengganu, the two occurrences were unconnected.
As added protection, Hamidin Mohamad Amin, the President of the Football Association of Malaysia, advised well-known football players to prioritize personal protection measures, such as hiring bodyguards.
Cover Photo: IG
Source: The Straits Times
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