Ahmad Fauzi Saari

Ahmad Fauzi Saari (born 30 April 1982 in Kulim, Kedah), is a Malaysian professional football player who last plays as a central midfielder for Malaysia Super League side Perlis FA.

Fauzi Saari
Personal information
Full name Ahmad Fauzi bin Saari
Date of birth (1982-04-30) 30 April 1982
Place of birth Kulim, Kedah, Malaysia
Height 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in)
Playing position(s) Central midfielder
Club information
Current team
 Suka Menanti FC (Head coach)
Youth career
2002–2004 Kedah FA President's Cup Team
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2004–2011 Kedah FA 95 (40)
2012 Johor FC 32 (1)
2013 Felda United 26 (0)
2014 ATM FA 7 (0)
2015 Negeri Sembilan FA 0 (0)
2016 Perlis FA 5 (0)
National team‡
2004 Malaysia U-23 4 (0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 4 September 2019
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 15 May 2014
In this Malay name, the name Saari is a patronymic, not a family name, and the person should be referred to by the given name, Ahmad Fauzi.

Early life

Ahmad Fauzi Saari grew up in Ladang Anak Kulim, where his father was a supervisor (Malay: mandor) and her mother used to ease their financial burden by tapping rubber there. He started playing football since he was a schoolboy, often with his multi-racial friends at the estate. In age of 16, his non-stop running style and talent in football was then discovered by teachers at Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Serdang (a secondary school in Serdang, Kedah).

Early career

There was no stopping Fauzi, or known as Pak Long among his Kedah teammates and fans. In 2002, he was selected for the Sukma Games to represent Kedah state.

Kedah FA

His game is valued highly by the Kedah management who have placed their trust on him to stoke the engine room starting from 2004 season. He has been playing an important role in Kedah's good run in season 2006/07 and has scored some important goals for the club, mainly from long range. And sometimes, Fauzi was given the captain's armband whilst Victor Andrag and Cornelius Bernard Huggins were out from the team.lukman

National team

In 2004, his ability to cover acres of space, no doubt due to his running around during his estate days, was discovered by Allan Harris. The Englishman, who helmed the Malaysia national football team from 2000 to 2004, quickly roped him in as an all-action man for the pre-Olympic campaign. Fauzi played in one match – in the 4–1 defeat to Iran on 3 March 2004. It was an unforgettable moment for the slightly-built player, because he remembered being outplayed by the physically superior Iranians. That remains to this day Fauzi's only appearance in the national jersey. That has not dampened his spirits. He recalled his first cap for Malaysia during an interview in 2006:

I found out the hard way the standard between the national league and the Asian level. The gap is worlds apart. That was the only time I was called for duty. Maybe the selectors thought I did not have the physique to survive the modern game.

[1] During the 2007 AFC Asian Cup campaign, Fauzi was called by head coach Norizan Bakar to represent the country. Although he was part of the squad that thrash by China, Uzbekistan and Iran, he did not selected to play any single match on the tournament.

Honours

Kedah

Personal
  • 100Plus-F.A.M National Football Awards: 2006/07 – Most Favourite Midfielder
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References
  1. "It all began in an estate". tmfootballchannel.com. 28 February 2007. Archived from the original on 28 September 2007. Retrieved 28 February 2007.


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