2023 Kelantan F.C. season

Kelantan

Owner	Norizam Tukiman
Head coach	Choi Moon-sik (until 4 April) Rezal Zambery Yahya (caretaker) Frank Bernhardt (from 9 April)
Stadium	Sultan Muhammad IV Stadium
Malaysia Super League	14th
Malaysia FA Cup	Quarter-final
Malaysia Cup	Round of 16
Top goalscorer	League: Leonardo Rolón (5) All: Ismahil Akinade (6)
Highest home attendance	6,011 vs Penang, Malaysia Super League, 5 March 2023
Average home league attendance	5,574
Biggest defeat	2–11 vs Selangor F.C., Malaysia Super League, 25 August 2023
Home colours Away colours Third colours
←  2022 2024 →
All statistics correct as of 26 January 2023.

The 2023 season is the 78th season in the existence of Kelantan Football Club. It will be the club's first campaign back in the Malaysia Super League since 2018 following their promotion from the previous season. In addition to the league, they will also compete in the Malaysia FA Cup and the Malaysia Cup.

On 13 January 2023, Choi Moon-sik has been appointed as club's new head coach. ^[1]

Management team

Position	Name
Manager	Qusmaini Noor Rusli
Head coach	Frank Bernhardt
Assistant head coach	Rezal Zambery Yahya
Assistant coach	Azli Mahmood
Goalkeeper coach	Abdul Rahman Baba
Fitness coach
Physiotherapist	Abdul Salam Mohamad Noh
Team analyst	Pol Corpas
Kitman	Shahrul Ridzuan Shamsudin

Players

First-team squad

As of 31 January 2023 ^[2]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 1 GK   MAS Farhan Abu Bakar 3 DF   MAS Khairul Helmi Johari 4 DF   MAS Ghaffar Rahman 5 DF   MAS Yusri Yuhasmadi 6 MF   ESP Mario Arqués (captain) 7 DF   MAS Arip Amiruddin 9 FW   GAM Nuha Marong 10 DF   ESP Cifu 11 MF   KOR Kang Yi-chan 13 GK   MAS Nik Amin 14 DF   KOR Kim Min-gyu 16 MF   MAS Faiz Mazlan (on loan from Penang) 17 MF   MAS Fazrul Amir 18 DF   MAS Afiq Azuan 19 FW   MAS Nurshamil Abd Ghani

No. Pos. Nation Player 21 FW   MAS Danial Ashraf 22 FW   MAS Shafiq Shaharudin 23 DF   PHI Carli de Murga 24 FW   NGA Ismahil Akinade 27 GK   MAS Rozaimi Rahamat 32 DF   PHI Christian Rontini (vice-captain) 33 FW   MAS Hafizan Ghazali 37 DF   MAS Gerald Gadit (on loan from Sabah) 61 FW   MAS Ammar Nuqman 66 MF   MAS Ikhwan Yazek 72 MF   MAS Syaqimi Rozi 77 MF   ARG Leonardo Rolón 80 MF   MAS Khairil Anuar 88 MF   MAS Muhaimin Izuddin 91 MF   MAS Afzal Akbar

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player — MF   MAS Mior Dani (at Kedah Darul Aman until 17 September 2023)

No. Pos. Nation Player — MF   IDN Natanael Siringoringo (at Dewa United until 31 March 2023)

Transfers

First leg

In:Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality. No. Pos. Nation Player — FW   MAS Farhan Roslan (loan return from Sabah) — MF   MAS Mior Dani (loan return from Sri Pahang) — FW   IDN Natanael Siringoringo (loan return from Dewa United) — GK   MAS Rozaimi Rahamat(from Johor Darul Ta'zim II) [3] — DF   MAS Gerald Gadit (on loan from Sabah) [4] — DF   KOR Kim Min-kyu(from Pohang Steelers) — FW   MAS Shafiq Shaharudin (from Kuala Lumpur Rovers) — MF   MAS Faiz Mazlan (on loan from Penang) — MF   KOR Kang Eui-chan(from Gangwon) — FW   GAM Nuha Marong (from Rajasthan United) [5] — MF   PHI Andreas Esswein (from United City) [5] — MF   ESP Mario Arqués (from Song Lam Nghe An) [6] — GK   MAS Farhan Abu Bakar (from Kuala Lumpur Rovers) — MF   MAS Khairil Anuar (from Sarawak United) — FW   MAS Leslee Jesunathan (from Petaling Jaya City) — FW   MAS Afzal Akbar (from UiTM) — DF   MAS Afiq Azuan(from Harini) — DF   PHI Christian Rontini (from Penang) [7] — DF   ESP Cifu (from Ibiza) — FW   NGA Ismahil Akinade (from Sheikh Russel) — DF   PHI Carli de Murga (from Johor Darul Ta'zim) — MF   ARG Leonardo Rolón (from Mitre)

Out:Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality. No. Pos. Nation Player — DF   MAS Latiff Suhaimi (loan return to Penang) — MF   MAS Mior Dani (loan to Kedah Darul Aman) — FW   JPN Kenta Hara — FW   BRA Nixon Guylherme — MF   BRA Felipe Hereda(to Democrata) — DF   MAS Zubir Azmi — DF   MAS Adam Nadzmi — MF   MAS Adam Malique(to Sri Pahang) — GK   MAS Asfa Abidin — GK   MAS Amin Faisal — MF   MAS Jasmir Mehat — FW   MAS Farhan Roslan (to Sabah) — MF   MAS Syed Sobri — MF   MAS Dzulfahmi Hadi(to PDRM) — FW   MAS Alifh Aiman(to PDRM) — GK   MAS Solehin Mamat — MF   MAS Shyamierul Razmee(to PDRM) — MF   MAS Azrie Basalie — MF   MAS Shahrul Igwan — DF   MAS Danial Hadri — DF   MAS Osman Yusoff — MF   MAS Shafiq Al-Hafiz (to Penang) — MF   MAS Mathias Mansor(to Sarawak United)

Competitions

Pre-season and friendlies

  Win  Draw  Loss  Fixtures

Buriram United v Kelantan

15 January 2023Friendly	Buriram United	7–0	Kelantan	Songkhla
		Report		Stadium: Tinsulanon Stadium

Kedah Darul Aman v Kelantan

20 January 2023Friendly	Kedah Darul Aman	0–2	Kelantan	Alor Setar
				Stadium: Darul Aman Stadium

UiTM v Kelantan

30 January 2023Friendly	UiTM	0–3	Kelantan	Shah Alam
				Stadium: UiTM Stadium

Kelantan v PIB

19 February 2023Friendly	Kelantan	2–0	PIB	Kota Bharu
				Stadium: Sultan Muhammad IV Stadium

Malaysia Super League

Main article: 2023 Malaysia Super League

League table

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification or relegation
10	Penang	26	6	6	14	29	50	−21	24
11	Perak	26	6	4	16	25	55	−30	22
12	Kelantan United	26	4	5	17	29	65	−36	17
13	Kuching City	26	2	6	18	24	51	−27	12
14	Kelantan [a]	26	2	2	22	29	121	−92	8	Ejected from Malaysian Super League

Source: MFL
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored.
Notes:

1. MFL officially snubs Kelantan club licensing approval.

Results summary

Overall								Home						Away
Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
8	1	1	6	9	25	−16	4	1	1	1	5	4	+1	0	0	5	4	21	−17

Last updated: 9 April 2023.
Source: Malaysia Super League

Results by round

Round	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
Ground	H	A	H	A	H	A	A	A	A
Result	L	L	W	L	D	L	L	L
Position	10	14	7	9	10	11	13	13

Updated to match(es) played on 9 April 2023. Source: Malaysian Football League
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss; P = Postponed

Matches

Kelantan v Kuching City

25 February 20231	Kelantan	1–2	Kuching City	Kota Bharu
17:30 MYT	Cifu 51' Marong  45' Gerald  90+5'	Report	Célio Santos  45' Abdallah 58' Kamara 71' Adam  76'	Stadium: Sultan Muhammad IV Stadium Attendance: 5,138 Referee: Ahmad Zuhaidi Dzulkifli

Sri Pahang v Kelantan

2 March 20232	Sri Pahang	4–1	Kelantan	Kuantan
21:00 MYT	Sherman 12' Ingreso 38' Agüero 43' Brundo 45+1' Azwan  73'	Report	Rontini  69' Cifu 90+5'	Stadium: Darul Makmur Stadium Attendance: 6,040 Referee: Razlan Joffri Ali

Kelantan v Penang

5 March 20233	Kelantan	2–0	Penang	Kota Bharu
21:00 MYT	Akinade 22' Rontini  33'  66' Fazrul 36' Ghaffar  44'	Report	Gomes  32' Saad  68'	Stadium: Sultan Muhammad IV Stadium Attendance: 6,011 Referee: Zulkarnain Zakaria

Johor Darul Ta'zim v Kelantan

11 March 20234	Johor Darul Ta'zim	5–1	Kelantan	Iskandar Puteri
17:30 MYT	Diogo 3' Endrick 26' Forestieri 35' Muñiz 56' Arif 82' (pen.)	Report	Arqués  29' Rolón 69' (pen.)	Stadium: Sultan Ibrahim Stadium Attendance: 24,404 Referee: Muhammad Khairulsyahmi Ahmad Khalidi

Kelantan v Kuala Lumpur City

17 March 20235	Kelantan	2–2	Kuala Lumpur City	Kota Bharu
20:15 MYT (UTC+8)	Kenny 41' (o.g.) Fazrul 45+2' Arqués  90+2' Amin  90+3' Arip  90+5'	Report	Tchétché 11' Lambert 34'	Stadium: Sultan Muhammad IV Stadium Attendance: 6,678 Referee: S. Logeswaran

Negeri Sembilan v Kelantan

1 April 20236	Negeri Sembilan	4–2	Kelantan	Paroi
22:00 MYT	Mahalli 16' Goulon 38' Safuwan  52' Tommy  73' Shahrel 76' Casagrande 89'	Report	Akinade 36' (pen.), 54'	Stadium: Tuanku Abdul Rahman Stadium Attendance: 1,885 Referee: Mohd Fusser Mad Sallih

Terengganu v Kelantan

4 April 20237	Terengganu	5–0	Kelantan	Kuala Nerus
22:00 MYT	Mintah 16' Adisak 21' Mamut 67' (pen.), 90+1' Hakimi 90+3'	Report	Arip  47'	Stadium: Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin Stadium Attendance: 5,025 Referee: Abdul Rahman Wahab

Selangor v Kelantan

9 April 20238	Selangor	3–0	Kelantan	Petaling Jaya
22:00 MYT	del Valle  6', 28' Al-Arab  36' Salifu 80', 90' Ruventhiran  89'	Report	Gerald  22'	Stadium: Petaling Jaya Stadium Attendance: 5,761 Referee: Muhammad Nazmi Nasaruddin

Sabah v Kelantan

19 April 20239	Sabah	v	Kelantan	Kota Kinabalu
21:15 MYT				Stadium: Likas Stadium

Malaysia FA Cup

Main article: 2023 Malaysia FA Cup

Manjung City v Kelantan

14 April 2023Round of 16	Manjung City	0-3	Kelantan	Manjung
22:00 MYT (UTC+08:00)	Faris Ariffin  38' Wan Izzat Wan Zaidi  72'	Report	Mario Arqués 33' Nuha Marong  37'59', 90' Afzal Akbar  42' Arip Amiruddin  69' Ghaffar Rahman  72' Kang Yi-chan  81'	Stadium: Manjung City Stadium Attendance: 557 Referee: Muhammad Shukor bin Zulkilfee

Squad statistics

Appearances and goals

• Players listed with no appearances have been in the matchday squad but only as unused substitutes.

No.	Pos	Nat	Player	Total		League		FA Cup		Malaysia Cup
				Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Goalkeepers
13	GK	MAS	Nik Mohd Amin	5	0	5	0	0	0	0	0
27	GK	MAS	Rozaimi Rahamat	3	0	3	0	0	0	0	0
Defenders
4	DF	MAS	Ghaffar Rahman	8	0	8	0	0	0	0	0
5	DF	MAS	Yusri Yuhasmadi	7	0	4+3	0	0	0	0	0
7	DF	MAS	Arip Amiruddin	6	0	2+4	0	0	0	0	0
10	DF	ESP	Cifu	8	2	6+2	2	0	0	0	0
14	DF	KOR	Kim Min-gyu	3	0	2+1	0	0	0	0	0
18	DF	MAS	Afiq Azuan	2	0	0+2	0	0	0	0	0
23	DF	PHI	Carli de Murga	6	0	6	0	0	0	0	0
32	DF	PHI	Christian Rontini	5	0	5	0	0	0	0	0
37	DF	MAS	Gerald Gadit	2	0	2	0	0	0	0	0
Midfielders
6	MF	ESP	Mario Arqués	8	0	7+1	0	0	0	0	0
11	MF	KOR	Kang Eui-chan	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0
16	MF	MAS	Faiz Mazlan	7	0	7	0	0	0	0	0
17	MF	MAS	Fazrul Amir	7	2	6+1	2	0	0	0	0
21	MF	MAS	Danial Ashraf	3	0	0+3	0	0	0	0	0
33	MF	MAS	Hafizan Ghazali	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0
66	MF	MAS	Ikhwan Yazek	5	0	2+3	0	0	0	0	0
77	MF	ARG	Leonardo Rolón	4	1	1+3	1	0	0	0	0
80	MF	MAS	Khairil Anuar	2	0	1+1	0	0	0	0	0
88	MF	MAS	Muhaimin Izuddin	7	0	1+6	0	0	0	0	0
91	MF	MAS	Afzal Akbar	7	0	7	0	0	0	0	0
Forwards
9	FW	GAM	Nuha Marong	3	0	2+1	0	0	0	0	0
19	FW	MAS	Nurshamil Abd Ghani	4	0	2+2	0	0	0	0	0
22	FW	MAS	Shafiq Shaharudin	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0
24	FW	NGA	Ismahil Akinade	6	3	6	3	0	0	0	0
Out on Loan
29	MF	MAS	Mior Dani	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Left the club during the Season

Last updated: 9 April 2023
Source: Competitions, Soccerway.com

Under-23s

Current squad

Further information: Kelantan F.C. Reserves and Academy

The Under-23s squad consists of players who participate in MFL Cup.

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 1 GK   MAS Johan Shahzidane Tendot 2 DF   MAS Muhammad Faris Mazelih 3 DF   MAS Rakesh Munusamy 4 FW   MAS Reegan Abraham Saravanan 5 DF   MAS Hafiq Almuhafiz Jasman 6 MF   MAS Krishna Thasan 7 MF   MAS Saranraj Kala Arasu 8 MF   MAS Mohamad Khala'if 9 MF   MAS Muhamad Raimi Musthpar 10 FW   MAS Muhamad Harith Akif 11 MF   MAS Haziman Che Ngah 12 FW   MAS Hariharan Kartheyges 13 DF   MAS Muhammad Amirul Hakim

No. Pos. Nation Player 14 DF   MAS Mohamad Khairul Amin 15 MF   MAS Amir Akmal 16 MF   MAS Ahmad Firdaus Roslan 17 MF   MAS Wan Muhamad Zulfadhli Ahza 18 DF   MAS Muhammad Izzat Emeer 19 FW   MAS Muhammad Mirza Malik 20 MF   MAS Wan Muhammad Irfan 21 MF   MAS Muhammad Afif Jazimin(captain) 23 MF   MAS Muhammad Rizaqmi 24 DF   MAS Muhammad Firdaus Hasnoddin 25 GK   MAS Muhammad Irfan Haikal 31 MF   MAS Khairil Anuar

MFL Cup

Kuala Lumpur City Extension v Kelantan B

3 March 20231	Kuala Lumpur City Extension	1—0	Kelantan B	Cheras
20:15 MYT (UTC+8)	Faizal Hafiq 76'	Report		Stadium: Kuala Lumpur Stadium Attendance: 187 Referee: Muhammad Latiffi Mohd Zahrom

Negeri Sembilan v Kelantan B

21 March 20232	Negeri Sembilan	0—0	Kelantan B	Paroi
16:45 MYT (UTC+8)		Report		Stadium: Tuanku Abdul Rahman Stadium Attendance: 46 Referee: Muhammad Aqmalhakim Abdul Rahim

Sri Pahang v Kelantan B

29 March 20233	Sri Pahang	3—0	Kelantan B	Kuantan
22:00 MYT (UTC+8)		Report		Stadium: Darul Makmur Stadium Attendance: 178 Referee: Mohd Izwan Abdullah

Kuching City v Kelantan B

3 April 20234	Kuching City	2—3	Kelantan B	Kuching
21:15 MYT (UTC+8)		Report	Harith Akif 7' (27), 66'	Stadium: Sarawak State Stadium Attendance: 80 Referee: Mohd Sarif Tahir

Appearances and goals

As of 3 April 2023

No.	Player	Position	Appearances	Goals
Kelantan Under-23s
1	Johan Shahzidane Tendot	GK	3	0
2	Muhammad Faris Mazelih	DF	2	0
3	Rakesh Munusamy	DF	3	0
4	Reegan Abraham	MF	2	0
6	Krishna Thasan	MF	3	0
7	Saranraj Kala Arasu	MF	3	0
8	Mohamad Khala'if	MF	3	0
9	Muhamad Raimi Musthpar	MF	1	0
10	Muhamad Harith Akif	FW	4	3
11	Haziman Che Ngah	MF	2	0
13	Muhammad Amirul Hakim Lailee	DF	1	0
14	Mohamad Khairul Amin	DF	3	0
15	Amir Akmal	MF	2	0
16	Ahmad Firdaus Roslan	MF	3	0
18	Muhammad Izzat Emeer	DF	4	0
19	Muhammad Mirza Malik	FW	2	0
20	Irfan Nizar	MF	3	0
21	Muhammad Afif Jazimin	MF	3	0
23	Muhammad Rizaqmi	MF	1	0
24	Muhammad Firdaus Hasnoddin	DF	4	0
25	Muhammad Irfan Haikal	GK	1	0
31	Khairil Anuar	MF	2	0
32	Hafizan Ghazali	MF	2	0
33	Nuha Marong	FW	1	0
34	Gerald Gadit	MF	1	0
35	Shafiq Shaharudin	FW	1	0
36	Kang Eui-chan	MF	1	0
Own goals				0
Total goals				3

References

1. "Kelantan FC ikat jurulatih Choi Moonsik bagi hadapi Liga Super 2023". berita.rtm.gov.my. Berita RTM. 13 January 2023.
2. "Squad – Kelantan Football Club". fam.org.my. Retrieved 31 January 2023.
3. "Kelantan Bawa Masuk Penjaga Gol Nama Bermula Dengan Ro". makanbola.com. MakanBola. 12 January 2023. Retrieved 31 January 2023.
4. "Gerald bakal kemudi benteng Kelantan FC". hmetro.com.my. Harian Metro. 12 January 2023. Retrieved 31 January 2023.
5. "Nuha Marong sandaran TRW robek kubu lawan". utusan.com.my. Utusan Malaysia. 30 January 2023. Retrieved 31 January 2023.
6. "Mario Arqués Kembali Beraksi Bersama TRW Kelantan". vocketfc.com. Vocket FC. 31 January 2023. Retrieved 31 January 2023.
7. "Import Kelahiran Itali Kini Sah Milik Kelantan". makanbola.com. Makan Bola. 7 February 2023.