Man from Manjoi is the new boy in Bari

By recent news accounts, he pumped money into the local football club Bari as a way of saying grazzi to Italy after he made a complete recovery from heart surgery.

One moment he was known to family and friends as Si Din Budok Peghok (he comes from that Malay enclave of Manjoi in Ipoh); the next he is Dino the Dandy hob-nobbing with Italian football congniscenti; right there in Bari!

Unsubstantiated accounts say he spent up to RM45 million to buy a 50% share in Bari, a Serie B football Club. A half-share means he wields considerable – nay equal if not majority – power in steering and managing the off-field corporate direction and activities of the club.

These are undertaken by men in Zegna suits and Ferragamo boots, who nibble feta cheese and pop olives soaked in vintage Chianti. Match day Saturdays find them bonding and networking from the comfort of well-appointed corporate boxes in football stadiums up and down Italy.

Yup, we may not have the dexterity to dribble the ball but we sure have the temerity to barge through the rarefied world of football club ownership. Hey – the Abramovichs, Khun Vichais and the Lius or the Yeungs of the world – here comes Perak Man himself.

Noordin is no ordinary budak peghok. Born in Penang in 1957, he grew up mostly in Manjoi before going to school in the Royal Military College in 1972. He then pursued qualifications in Business and Finance before finding a professional niche in corporate Malaysia in a varied field.

BOARDROOM LINK

His association with Europe in general and Italy in particular centred on his boardroom roles in the Malaysian-Fresh Institute in the field of education and Finmeccanica in the area of defence, military technology and logistics. Finmeccanica, with its headquarters in Rome, the Italian capital cemented this relationship further.

Noordin’s military connection cultivated in the dormitories of the RMC in Sungai Besi of the early 70s contributed in cementing the Latin connection with the top echelons of the Malaysian defence estabishment. This was brought about by the burgeoning Malaysian-Italian military and aerospace ties in the 1980s.

What strengthened this Malaysian-Latin amore further was a personal brush with the fragility of life.

Noordin had revealed that he suffered a heart attack a decade ago, only to suffer a second one in Rome at Christmas last year. The medical treatment he received in Rome was so successful that those with no access to his medical history would be none the wiser for his past cardiac ordeal.

Pumping funds into a much-loved football club was his way to say grazzi.

CHALLENGE TO BUILD CHAMPIONS

Malaysian interest in Italian football does not match the same heights of ecstasy attached to the English game through the Premier League.

Most fans however remain piqued to Italian football through their exploits in winning the World Cup in 1982. This was achieved with the emergence of the Azzuris in the 80s through the marshalling of the backline policed by Claudio Gentile just ahead of man mountain Dino Zoff.

Up in attack, who could forget Paolo Rossi, diminutive in physique but with a goal poacher’s predatory instincts that guarantees goals from the most puny of opportunities.

Noordin was asked why he did not emulate the likes of Vincent Tan and Tony Fernandez who chose clubs in more popular football arenas (amongst Malaysians) in England. He retorted by saying he loved the challenge of building on the potential of a team like Bari. He was looking to create a champion, not to buy one!

With Bari, the ingredients are there. The club climbed to third in the Serie B table on 60 points after the latest three-nil victory against Como on Saturday. They therefore look well on the way to qualify for promotion and play in Serie A next season.

Signore Noordin was greeted by huge applause from fans as he attended the Como game, having cemented the purchase the week before. He wore a hat that curiously resembled one of those fabric songkoks that could easily have me mistaking him for a Nepali.

Whatever its sartorial origins, we forgive him as it would no doubt have fortified him against the last remnants of the chill winds blowing from the Adriatic Sea – a far cry indeed from the sweltering 36 degree heat that’s sweeping Manjoi.

LATIN LEAD NEEDED FOR THE MALAYSIAN GAME

Noordin’s plunge with financial commitment to Italian football brings into focus the plight of our own game. The latest FIFA rankings places Malaysia down a lowly 174.

Shall we invite Noordin to pump home any spare Lira (1 Malaysian Ringgit buys 433 Italian Lira) to hopefully make a difference to our footballing fortunes?

The Malays have a saying – tepuk dada, tanya selera. Translated, it is a commentary that depicts a situation where men are driven to action by affairs of the heart.

While we do not want any visiting Signore to have to go through a similar cardiac ordeal that Noordin experienced, we really could do with an Italian heartfelt amore with Malaysian football.