BYE-BYE Peter de Roo, here comes Ong Kim Swee. Former national youth coach Kim Swee is set to replace De Roo as the new technical director of the FA of Malaysia (FAM) after the 50-year-old announced on Facebook that he will not be extending his contract, which expires at the end of this year.
Kim Swee, who guided Malaysia to the Sea Games gold medal in 2011, is currently attached with FAM as assistant technical director-cum-youth development unit head.
It is learnt that FAM president Datuk Hamidin Amin and secretary-general Stuart Ramalingam had a closed door meeting with Kim Swee last week over the soon-to-be-vacant technical director's position.
A source said Kim Swee has been offered De Roo's job.
De Roo, who joined FAM in 2017, is regarded as the brains behind FAM's Malaysian DNA project, which was launched in July, last year.
"With a heavy heart, I met with the FAM president and told him of my decision to not extend my contract that expires at the end of this year," De Roo posted on his Facebook page yesterday.
"I say this with great pain in my heart because somehow I feel that I'm not ready to leave, as it feels we are just getting started.
"My time with FAM has been a great journey which I thoroughly enjoyed.
"I loved working with so many amazing people in Malaysian football, especially with the staff in my department. Thank you all for your love and support."
However, De Roo did not reveal on Facebook the reason behind his decision not to continue with FAM.
This new development came just days after De Roo joined other FAM members for the Malaysian Football DNA Tour Series for the southern zone in Johor and Melaka.
When contacted, a FAM official said that the issue is being addressed internally and that an official statement will be released soon.
Hamidin, when contacted, also declined to reveal details of De Roo's impending departure.