KLANG: Sultan of Selangor Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah today launched a book on the country’s football legend and perhaps, Selangor’s greatest son, the late Datuk Mokhtar Dahari, at the Istana Alam Shah here.
Titled ‘Mokhtar Dahari: Legenda Bola Sepak Malaysia’, the book is the brainchild of Sultan Sharafuddin and was written by Zinitulniza Abdul Kadir.
It is also launched in line with ‘Super Mokh’, a musical to be staged at Istana Budaya from Nov 6 to 18.
‘Super Mokh’ was the name affectionately given to Mokhtar, a feared striker with strength, skills and agility who helped steer his home state towards winning the Malaysia Cup 10 times.
At the launch, Sultan Sharafuddin expressed joy over the successs of the Malaysian Institute of Translation and Books (ITBM) in publishing the book, following his close relationship with the soccer legend since the 1970s.
“The book tells of Mokhtar’s life journey and personality in detail. I am impressed by the way he thinks and his determination to win in football.
“Mokhtar isn’t a quitter and at the time, the Selangor football team was made up of various races, but they all played well together.
“I hope their attitude will be emulated by Selangor’s current players,” he said, adding that he hoped the book would win the hearts of local book and sports enthusiasts.
Also present at the launch was Mokhtar’s widow, Datin Tengku Zarina Tengku Ibrahim.
Internationally, Mokhtar represented the Malaysis and scored a total of 125 goals in tournaments, including the Asian Games, pre-Olympic qualifiers and pre-World Cup matches. — Bernama