FAM president Hamidin Amin said the reintroduction of the Harimau Muda programme, scrapped in 2015, would ensure continuity of the development of young footballers in the country, Sinar Harian reported.

However, he acknowledged that the programme’s revival would cost FAM a significant amount of money.

“FAM wants to discuss with the minister about re-establishing Harimau Muda A or B where the payroll would be under FAM,” he was quoted as saying.

Harimau Muda A is the Under-23 national football team, while Harimau Muda B is the Under-21 national football team.

“We may consider sending the teams abroad if it is suitable for them to play in foreign leagues, similar to what was done before,” he said.

Harimau Muda was Malaysia’s national under-22 football team, acting as a feeder for the senior national team.

The team won the second-tier league known as Liga premier in 2009, before being split into Harimau Muda A and B due to scheduling conflicts.

In 2015, FAM disbanded the programme, merging the teams into one before returning all players to their state teams.

Hamidin hoped the programme will benefit the national senior team in FAM’s mission to ensure the Harimau Malaya squad remains competitive in the Asian Cup.

Malaysia ended a 42-year drought by qualifying on merit for the 2023 Asian Cup in Qatar last January. However, the national team only managed to collect one point from three games.

“We must qualify for the 2027 Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia to remain among the top 24 teams in Asia,” he said.