Speaking to FMT, former striker Matlan said this would ultimately benefit Malaysian football as players at the school level would receive training from trained professionals who have a lot of knowledge and experience.
Matlan, whose footballing career was cut short after he was arrested for allegedly being involved in a match-fixing scandal, said there was so much talent on the ground at school levels.
“We already have a system where youths can play and compete in football competitions such as the Majlis Sukan Sekolah Daerah, Majlis Sukan Sekolah Negeri and Majlis Sukan Sekolah Malaysia.”
“The talent pool is already there, so we have to harness and develop this talent from a young age.”
Hence, Matlan said, it would be good if former national players were taken in as coaches in schools rather than having young players being trained by teachers who teach physical education.
He added that it would also be one way for the government to help former national footballers after they retire, aside from giving them financial help to obtain coaching badges to facilitate their entry into the coaching field.
Getting the necessary coaching badge, Matlan said, was costly and not every footballer receives big pay.
Sabahan Matlan became the darling of Malaysian football after he scored a brace against a senior England side which included the likes of Stuart Pearce, Nigel Clough, John Salako and Gary Lineker, amongst others.
In 1995, Matlan and five other Sabah Football Association players were arrested for alleged match-fixing and while the charges against the “Sabah Six” were dropped, they were punished with a lifetime ban in state and national level football activities.
While the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) has allowed the six to be involved in limited state level games such as veterans friendlies, FAM still needs the green light from Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) before fully lifting their ban.
Earlier this month, Daily Express reported that FAM had received a response from FIFA, but the national footballing body was still studying the content of the response.
Some 22 years on, Matlan is a small time contractor in his home town of Kota Belud, still hoping for his ban to be lifted.
“I don’t want to think too far ahead as to what I want to do if I my ban is lifted. I will cross the bridge when I get there,” he said, when asked whether he would want to go into coaching.
“What I am sure of is that football is in my blood. My whole family plays football, from my wife, to my brother to my son. It is my first love and I can never leave it.”