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Baihakki could be back with LionsXII

SINGAPORE — Baihakki Khaizan could be on his way back here to join the LionsXII for the remainder of the 2014 Malaysian Super League (MSL) season, and the Malaysia Cup, should the team qualify.

Baihakki Khaizan (second from left) was told by Johor Darul Ta'zim I that his services were no longer required. TODAY FILE PHOTO

Baihakki Khaizan (second from left) was told by Johor Darul Ta'zim I that his services were no longer required. TODAY FILE PHOTO

SINGAPORE — Baihakki Khaizan could be on his way back here to join the LionsXII for the remainder of the 2014 Malaysian Super League (MSL) season, and the Malaysia Cup, should the team qualify.

This follows his “removal” from the Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) I team on Friday, when the 30-year-old was told his services were no longer required.

In a one-on-one meeting with JDT I team manager Bojan Hodak, Baihakki was told he has not been sacked, but, rather, that he will no longer play.

Brazilian Marcos Antonio Elias Santos, who last played for FC Nuremberg in the German Bundesliga, replaces the Singaporean.

“I have spoken to (Johor FA President) the Crown Prince of Johor and he told me the team management felt they needed a bigger-built central defender who could cope with the height and physique of some of the opposing foreign strikers in the league,” Baihakki told TODAY.

The MSL mid-season transfer window closed at the weekend, although league rules would have precluded an immediate move for Baihakki to JDT II, the other Johor team that play in the second-tier Malaysian Premier League and is skippered by Lions captain Shahril Ishak.

“I have been given an assurance that I will join JDT II for the 2015 season,” said Baihakki.

“I have also been told I can join my team-mates in training if I want to. I am still on the payroll of the Johor FA and I have a four-year contract with them.”

The defender’s concern is to continue playing competitive matches to keep up his match fitness.

“I cannot join another team in the MSL because of the FA of Malaysia’s cooling off period ruling, which requires a foreign player to sit out the remaining of the season and wait for a new one,” he said.

“We also spoke about the possibility of me going out on loan to another team. And there is the S-League, the Thai league or the Indonesian league. But for me, the logical choice is to go back to the LionsXII.

“It shouldn’t be a problem for me because I am a Singaporean and if I do go back to the LionsXII, I am going back as a local, not a foreigner, and therefore, the cooling off period ruling does not apply.”

For Baihakki, playing competitively would keep him in the frame for selection to the national team.

“I want to meet (Lions head coach) Bernd Stange and seek his views. The Suzuki Cup is coming up in November and I want to be considered for selection,” said the central defender, who excelled in Singapore’s winning campaign in the 2012 ASEAN Football Federation Championship.

Apart from Baihakki, JDT I also dropped their most expensive signing, Pablo Aimar. The former Argentina midfielder, reportedly signed for a US$2 million (S$2.5 million) annual salary, has yet to recover fully from an ankle injury.

In a statement released by the Johor FA, the Crown Prince Tunku Ismail Ibrahim said: “He played in the opening two matches and then he was injured and we had to rest him for six matches.

“The investment in Aimar is heavy, but unfortunately, for now we can only rely on the two foreigners we have, striker Luciano Figueroa from Argentina and Hariss Harun from Singapore.”

In recent weeks, JDT I have seen some upheavals, including former Kelantan coach Hodak taking over from Cesar Jiminez as coach, with the latter sent to coach JDT II.

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