THE biggest challenge facing football in Malaysia amid the Covid-19 pandemic isn't about pay cuts, sponsors running away or clubs in debts.
It is not persuading the government to allow the M-League to restart or ensure players follow standard operating procedures.
It's not even those eerie images that will define the M-League: matches played in empty stadiums with players sitting 1.5m apart on the bench and wearing face masks.
No, the biggest fear is the future of Malaysian's football or whatever is left of it. It's about saving the country's youth football, the foundation of talent for national teams. That is even as football in Malaysia becomes one of the major casualties of the coronavirus crisis with training and matches suspended since mid-March.
While elite athletes train at home, children sadly have no weekends to look forward to, as their favourite sports fell like tenpins in the face of the rampaging virus.
Youths, who aspire to be professionals athletes, have been unable to gather for training due to restricted movements orders from MCO to CMCO.
We can't escape the fact that coronavirus will take a terrible toll on all sports in the country. There will be a new normal and when grassroots football comes back to life, priorities will be different as many parents will be out of work.
A recent survey by recruitment company JobStreet showed that one in five Malaysians has lost their jobs due to Covid-19. It also revealed that more than two million Malaysians are expected to end up unemployed.
As a result, parents, facing lesser income, will be forced to cancel their children's training courses at private sports academies.
It's an ugly cycle. Those running these training centres will go bust as they won't be able to sustain. The private entities who usually sponsor grassroots football are also getting battered.
There will be a knock-on effect on children's health in terms of rising obesity levels and psychological consequences.
Many do not know that the value of sports to local government and communities goes beyond turning aspiring footballers into superstars.
Sport plays a role in bringing communities together, having a social and cultural impact, and reducing anti-social behaviour.
Without volunteers and coaches, matches and training sessions will not happen.
The FA of Malaysia (FAM) and other football bodies are just not in the condition to help mitigate the asphyxiating situation at grassroots level.
They, too, are choking, facing problems themselves and serious ones too. M-League clubs are dying and crying for money.
Amid the turmoil, there's not going to be anything much left for others at the bottom of the football ecosystem, especially at grassroot.
FAM cancelled the President's Cup, Youth Cup and National Futsal League for the safety of the footballers involved.
However, from a different perspective, the scrapping of the youth leagues is a drastic move with far reaching consequences to football development in the country.
Financial support for the game at grassroots level will come to a stop, and that means no more funds to support the existing platform for youth footballers to hone their skill.
When national sports associations themselves are facing cash crunch, imagine what those smaller football academies are going through.
For those who claim that Malaysian football will be back to normal next year, that is rubbish. The grim truth is Malaysian football will not be the same again.
Clubs will face financial nightmares, as sponsors, reeling from the Covid-19 economic impact, will tighten their belts.
Nobody can save football at all levels for now as running leagues or competitions need money. And there is no money in sight.
It's going to get worse next year as business experts foresee a deep recession happening post-Covid-19.
The virus should eventually be beaten but it will have already caused so much destruction to the world's economies and catastrophic damage to sport's foundation — the grassroots.