Arif Aiman has become a goal and assists king for Johor Darul Ta’zim, or JDT as they’re best known, over the past couple of seasons, but it’s one play, for which he won’t be credited an assist that is one of his finest in a JDT shirt.
Back in April 2022, with COVID restrictions still enforced across parts of Asia, the group stage of the AFC Champions League was forced into hubs dotted across the continent.
Johor, in southern Malaysia near the Singaporean border, hosted Group I containing the home team, JDT, as well as continental heavyweights Kawasaki Frontale, Ulsan Hyundai and Guangzhou Evergrande; the latter of which was forced to send a youth team owing to China’s own harsh COVID restrictions.
With only one team guaranteed of progression, and with one game left to be played, JDT sat second in the group, behind Ulsan Hyundai on goal difference. Kawasaki were a further two points back and Guangzhou’s youth team were simply cannon fodder for the rest of the group.
With Ulsan drawn to play JDT in the final game, the equation was simple; a win for either side would see them progress.
For Ulsan, two-time champions, this was par for the course. They had made it past the group stage in five of their previous seven attempts, lifting the trophy in both 2012 and 2020.
JDT, meanwhile, had never progressed from the group stage. In fact, before the 2022 campaign they had only won two of their 12 matches in the Champions League.
With scores locked at 1-1 deep into second half stoppage time, and with Kawasaki winning the other game quite comfortably, Ulsan were headed through thanks to a better head-to-head record with the Japanese side.
But Arif had other ideas.
After both teams traded shots that cannoned off the woodwork, Ulsan’s experienced goalkeeper Jo Hyeon-woo, made a critical mistake, opting to punch clear a high ball he could’ve – and should’ve – caught after Arif’s goal-bound shot was deflected high.
Arif, then only 19, threw his hands to his head thinking the moment had past. But as Jo inexplicably gave JDT another opportunity, the teenager sprung into action.
Winning the ball ahead of Lee Myung-jae, he found space to square the ball across the box. With Fernando Forrestieri ready to pounce at the back post, Park Young-woo’s attempted clearance could only be bundled into his own net.
JDT had snatched a famous victory and progressed to the knockout rounds for the first time in their history.
While his efforts will never be reflected in the record books, it was Arif’s perseverance and tenacity that had provided JDT with arguably it’s greatest moment in its decade of dominance.
Delivering on potential
Born in Kuantan, the state capital of Pahang on the east coast of Malaysia, about a three-hour drive from Kuala Lumpur, Arif’s talents were obvious from a young age.
Described by those who know him as a quiet and humble young man, one who would often shy away from the spotlight, he was first discovered through the MyKids football program at age 10, later joining the country’s National Football Development Programme and the Mokhtar Dahari Academy (AMD).
But once there, despite his talent, things didn’t just automatically fall into place. In truth, he struggled to make an impact at the NFDP, often consigned to playing with the B-team. Perhaps his introverted personality played a part.
“He was a decent talent during his NFDP days,” Malaysian journalist and broadcaster, Keeshanan Sundaresan, told The Asian Game.
“But (he) didn’t get the same level of praise and adoration as Luqman Hakim, for instance. He was often not in the main squad, too. Some coaches felt he was too small, some felt he might not be able to elevate his game.”
Some, but not all.
Gonzalo Sanz Zaballos is a Spanish youth coach, and former head of methodology at Valencia, the club that nurtured Korean prodigy Lee Kang-in.
Working at JDT since 2017, as part of a partnership the Malaysian giants have with the Spanish side, Sanz was coaching JDT’s U17 team when they played AMD’s B-team. Arif came off the bench that day, playing the final 15 minutes, but it was enough to capture Sanz’s attention.
“Gonzalo called me straight away and said there was a kid here who is special,” JDT CEO, Alistair Edwards, told The Asian Game.
“We came back to the club, watched the game and we were convinced, so we signed him up straight away.”
That was in 2018. It’s one of the best decisions and investments the club has made.
“He’s been our best player,” Edwards continued.
“He went though our under-18, under-19, under-21, JDT II teams and straight to the first team all in 18 months, he was that good.”
By early 2020 he had made his debut for the senior team aged just 17 and attracted the attention of the national under-19 coach, Bojan Hodak.
“Things only truly accelerated for him once he had joined JDT,” Sundaresan explained.
“It also helped that his physical growth accelerated over that period, and consistent game time under elite coaches at JDT also helped him. Whilst being at JDT, Bojan Hodak took a keen interest in him and got him involved with the national set-up.
“From then on, it was just upwards for him.”
Becoming the best
As Arif was making his way into the senior team at JDT, the perennial Malaysian champions already had a wunderkid on their books in the form of Safawi Rasid.
The prodigious talent had put in a number of eye-catching displays for both club and country and looked destined for bigger things. But an unfortunate injury presented a sliding doors moment for both Safawi and Arif.
“In March 2021, in a game vs UiTM FC, Safawi got injured within eight minutes into the game,” Sundaresan said.
“He was the undisputed local star at that point. Arif Aiman comes on to replace him and three minutes later, he opens the scoring for JDT. They go on to win that game 4-0 and by the end of the season, Arif Aiman is voted MVP.
“That game always stands out to me because it felt like JDT needed someone to step up after Safawi’s injury and Arif did exactly just that.”
Comparisons between the two are only natural, if a little unfair.
“Safawi has gone through a bit of a struggle in recent seasons”, Sundaresan continued. “I feel bad for Safawi to make this comparison but Arif is definitely better than the prime Safawi we saw. Arif has got more dimensions to this game and is a bit more unpredictable.”
For Edwards, that Arif has been the clubs best player for the last three seasons – at a club with some of the best foreign talent in Southeast Asia – speaks volumes.
“Every challenge thats put in front of him, he takes it in his stride,” Edwards, the former Australia U17 and U20 coach, said.
“I always say it’s great that we have all these international players, but Arif is probably our most consistent player for the past three years. When you have a local player come through the JDT academy, on par with the foreign players we have here, it’s really special.
“In our really tough games he is our go-to player. He’s the one that provides the assists or scores the goals.”
The numbers back that up.
Across all competitions, domestic and continental in 2023, he racked up 24 goals and 16 assists from 39 games. He was the dominant force and was unsurprisingly named the Malaysian player of the year for a second straight year.
It’s not just at club level that he is producing either, his performance for Malaysia against Kyrgyzstan in World Cup qualifying in November only amplified the hype around the 21-year-old.
“Malaysia were trailing 3-1 with 20 minutes left on the clock,” Sundaresan explained, “and Arif just decided to completely run riot and played a part in our next three goals as we won the game 4-3.
“In fact, he had a part to play in every goal we scored that night. It was easily his best performance in a Malaysian shirt and I loved it so much because it reminded people that Arif is so much more than just fancy goals. He is also an incredible creator and team player.
“Watch the highlights of that game and tell me he wasn’t utterly sensational!”
It’s the kind of form that has already attracted significant interest from both Japan and Korea, but for the time being, JDT has no interest in letting their prized possession leave, recently tying him down to a new three-year deal.
Arif, for his part, is in no hurry to leave. He’s seem the struggles his compatriot, Luqman Hakim, once dubbed the ‘next big thing’ in Malaysia, has gone through in Europe.
Interestingly, at the same time JDT snapped up Arif, they also tried to sign Luqman. Their contrasting fortunes act as an important lesson when it comes to the development of aspiring talents.
While Luqman will watch on from afar this month, Arif stands poised to be the main man for Malaysia.
At such a tender age, it’s a crown he is already comfortable to wear.
Listen to The Asian Game Podcast as we preview Group E at the AFC Asian Cup 2023 featuring Malaysia
