Malaysia interim coach Ong Kim Swee says he accepts FIFA's sanctions stemming from crowd trouble at last month's home AFC World Cup qualifier, but questions the decision to award Saudi Arabia a 3-0 victory.
The Malaysians were trailing 2-1 at Shah Alam Stadium in the 88th minute when a section of fans fired flares and smoke bombs onto the pitch, forcing the Group A match on Sept. 8 to be abandoned.
Football's governing body fined Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) 40,000 Swiss francs ($41,212) and ordered the Southeast Asian nation to play their next qualifier -- against United Arab Emirates (UAE) at Shah Alam Stadium on Nov. 17 -- behind closed doors. It will be the first time in Malaysian football history that a match will be played with the fans locked out.
But Ong believes that the scoreline of 2-1 should stand, instead of a 3-0 result.
"Our concern is regarding the scoreline because there's a two-goal difference between 3-0 and 2-1," Ong told ESPN FC. "I don't know if we are able to do anything about it, but if we are, we should definitely look at appealing about the decision."
Ong, and his assistant coach Brad Maloney, have been appointed in a caretaker capacity until the end of the year after Dollah Salleh stepped down in the wake of a humiliating 10-0 defeat away to UAE on Sept. 3.
FAM are advertising the coaching positions for both the senior and under-23 sides, with appointments expected before the end of the year.
Ong says he is disappointed that a handful of local fans spoiled what was a much-improved performance against the highly rated Saudis, which came just five days after that record loss in Abu Dhabi.
"We can't blame anyone else but ourselves for what has happened," he said. "I hope that everyone can learn from this good lesson so it won't be repeated again.
"When you play in an empty stadium at home, it is a big advantage to the opponents."
Malaysia will face Laos in a friendly in Bangkok on Thursday before travelling to Dili to play Timor Leste in a 2018 AFC World Cup qualifier on Oct. 13.
FAM said they would wait until they receive a formal letter from FIFA before considering any kind of appeal.
"FIFA made their announcement on their website. We have to wait for the official documents before filing our appeal," deputy president Datuk Seri Affandi Hamzah told The Star.