JOHOR Darul Ta’zim II (JDT II) coach Ervin Boban admitted that he made a mistake by taking off Lebanese striker Mohamad Ghaddar in the 1-0 win over UKM FC in Friday’s first leg of the Challenge Cup final in Pasir Gudang.
Boban was unaware that forward Rozaimi Abd Rahman was nursing an injury and instead replaced Ghaddar with Amirulhadi Zainal as he wanted to strengthen his midfield.
“Some might have thought that I was having a war of words with Ghaddar on the touchline. It was nothing like that.
“Ghaddar told me that he wanted to continue playing as Rozaimi was injured. There was no argument with Ghaddar.
“However, I admit my mistake. Rozaimi was struggling with the injury, and I did not notice it,” said Boban.
Amirulhadi scored JDT II’s winning goal in the 64th minute. UKM will entertain Boban’s side in the return leg in Cheras.
On the win, Boban said: “UKM made it very tough for my side.
“UKM are a solid side and have a great coach with them. They showed quality and made it very difficult for us.
“We, however, managed to control the match after the breather but could not convert chances,” said Boban.
UKM assistant coach Juzaili Samion praised his players for their promising performance.
“My team controlled the first half and created chances but in the second half, we made mistakes.
“We will now plan for the return leg. The final isn’t over yet.
“We will try to overturn the deficit and win our first major trophy in Cheras,” said Juzaili.