KUALA LUMPUR: What is in the past stays in the past, but ex-Selangor striker David Mitchell believes history builds a team's DNA.
Mitchell, 61, who also played for Millwall (1995-1996), Newcastle United (1990-1991), Chelsea (1988-1990) and Feyenoord (1987-1989), was responding to comments from Johor Darul Ta'zim (JDT) owner Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim, who challenged Selangor to break the Southern Tigers' records in the M-League.
JDT achieved their second consecutive quadruple this season and ended their campaign unbeaten for the fourth straight season in the Super League, securing their 10th straight crown.
"The past is important because it's in a club's DNA, but it also does not equal the future," said Mitchell.
"You must progress and move forward. It is important to strive for success without breaking the bank.
"When I played for Selangor, they could have been the biggest club in Asia. Then, the Red Giants had fantastic support."
Mitchell, who was part of Selangor's 1995-96 Malaysia Cup-winning squad, said the only thing Selangor is missing now is development.
"I think they need to look at developing players like how the Dutch clubs are doing. They (Dutch) know they can't compete against Manchester United, Liverpool, Chelsea, Barcelona and Real Madrid, so they started developing their players and selling them to make ends meet," said Mitchell, who is Feyenoord Rotterdam's international scout and football consultant (Australia and Asia).
"It's about punching above their weight in a small country of 16 million.
"Selangor must look into ways to progress and compete at the highest level."
Selangor have qualified for the 2024-2025 Asian Champions League 2 (formerly AFC Cup) after finishing runners-up in the Super League.
On Wednesday, Tunku Ismail challenged Selangor to beat JDT's records.
"Please break our record. The FA of Malaysia president (Datuk Hamidin Amin) and most of his exco members are from Selangor. The Red Giants have been receiving an annual funding of RM45 million from the state government for the last eight seasons, and still no trophy.
"They (Selangor) qualified for Asia because JDT had won all of the trophies. Otherwise, they wouldn't have had a taste."
Tunku Ismail advised relevant parties to focus on their clubs instead of making comparisons and accusations.