Selangor FA appear to be on a collision course with Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) after refusing to release three of their players to take part in Friday's friendly against Liverpool at the Bukit Jalil National Stadium.
The Reds arrived in Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday night ahead of the match, but the Malaysia Selection side are likely to be without the Selangor trio of Robbie Cornthwaite, Afiq Azmi and Ahmad Hazwan Bakri.
Selangor want their players to focus on their Malaysia Super League campaign as the Red Giants try to finish in the top two, which would earn them a berth in next season's AFC Cup.
"We don't want to fight anyone, especially FAM, but we believe we have a strong reason for not releasing our players for an exhibition match," Selangor manager Amirudin Shari told The Star.
"The match is not being held during the FIFA calendar so I think we have a good case."
Currently fifth on the MSL table -- nine points behind leaders Pahang -- the Red Giants aren't in action again until Aug. 1 when they play Sime Darby at Shah Alam Stadium.
"We want to keep our players fresh for the Super League campaign," Amirudin said. "We have always released our players for exhibition matches including against Tottenham (in May), but we feel this match does not benefit us or the national team."
If found guilty of M-League rules, Selangor could receive a heavy fine and be docked points.
In 2008, Selangor lost three MSL points when four of their players skipped the final day of an FAM three-day clinic conducted by Liverpool legend Ian Rush.
Ironically, Selangor's coach seven years ago was national boss Dollah Salleh, who is also overseeing the Malaysia Selection team.
The game kicks off at 8.45 p.m. on Friday and is organised by Pro Events. Liverpool will hold their official pre-match press conference at 5.30pm on Wednesday at their base at Saujana Hotel Resort, Shah Alam.