Even though they registered a stunning victory as Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) had to play with 10 men, PKNS FC coach, K. Rajagobal does not see the win at Larkin Stadium last night (Wednesday) as something of a stroke of luck.
In fact, Rajagobal said that all his charges performed admirably to frustrate JDT whose reputation preceeds them, more so at their fortress of Larkin Stadium which was packed with thousands of the Southern Tigers fans.
“Even though JDT are a very strong team, we came over with a very positive mindset to win. I saw all my players showing tremendous commitment and they all played really well.
“This victory was not because of luck because we managed to penetrate JDT’s defence a few times and Kpah Sherman got in a one-on-one situation with their goalkeeper Izham Tarmizi Roslan and he prevailed to score.
“I cannot deny that luck is important in a match, but I want to make it clear that our victory was not just because of sheer luck.
“Our players played their hearts out against a very strong team and they managed to prevail and emerge as victors,” stressed Rajagobal after the match.
PKNS FC stunned mighty JDT by winning the encounter 1-0 to march to the quarter-finals of the FA Cup thanks to Sherman’s goal in the 49th minute after he managed to get the better of goalie Izham Tarmizi Roslan.
Speaking on the incident which led to JDT defender Kiko Insa being shown a straight red card in the 10th minute for a rough challenge on Muhd Faizat Mohd Ghazali, Rajagobal said that there were no tactical changes made even after that as they stuck to their initial game plan.
akukan selepas itu.
“Even after Kiko Insa got his marching orders, I did think of making some changes, but then again JDT has good, quality players in every department.
“Even being one man short on the field, the home side still managed to put pressure on us. So I instructed my players to remain disciplined and not to give them any room or space to threaten our goal because we knew that they’ve got individual talent at their disposal that can be devastating,” he said.
JDT manager Luciano Figueroa expressed gratitude to all his players for trying very hard to turn things around despite being one man short without Kiko Insa.
“Losing a key player so early in the game really made things very difficult for us but our players did try their best,” Figueroa pointed out.