KUALA LUMPUR: Romel Morales is still waiting for his Malaysian citizenship that will allow the Colombian to be an option for national football team head coach Kim Pan Gon.
The 26-year-old striker is set to be the second youngest naturalised player, after Gambian-born Mohamadou Sumareh, 24, in the Malaysia team.
The other naturalised players in Harimau Malaya are Lee Tuck, 35, Guilherme de Paula, 37, Endrick Dos Santos, 28, Liridon Krasniqi, 31, Sergio Aguero, 29, and Paulo Josue, 34.
Last month, it was announced that the security vetting in Malaysian citizenship application has been reduced from 73 days to 14 through the integrated security vetting system launched by the National Registration Department.
Morales came to Malaysia in 2018 and played for PKNS FC for two years before moving to Melaka United in 2020. The Colombian joined KL City in 2021 where he played 58 games and scored 18 goals.
KL City chief executive officer Stanley Bernard said: "There is due diligence to be done and it's tougher for Colombians compared to, say a country like Brazil, but once Morales gets signed off, then it will progress to the next phase where we'll get a clearer picture of the timeline."
Morales has completed his five-year stay in Malaysia after playing consistently in the M-League, a Fifa requirement for naturalisation.