Aide Iskandar lifted the AFF championship trophy ( as credited ) I initially planned to post this blog entry immediately after the Lions' successful run in the ASEAN Football Championship. However, I decided to wait and gauge the reactions before proceeding. MEDIA CELEBRATES, BUT CRITICS REMAIN While the media and fans are celebrating the national team’s triumph in retaining their regional supremacy, there remains a group of sceptics who dismiss this as a significant achievement. “They just got lucky. Look at the midfield - they couldn’t handle the Thais,” remarked one critic I overheard. Another chimed in, “Is this the standard of football we’re paying $4,000 for?” And, of course, the perennial comment surfaced: “They’re not as good as the players from the past national teams.” If the first two criticisms hold some weight for certain people, fair enough. However, I do have thoughts on the last statement. Just a few days before the second leg of the semi-final between Malaysia and ...